Comparative Evaluation of the Effects of Different Dietary Fibers as Natural Additives on the Shelf Life of Cooked Sausages

The incorporation of dietary fibers in meat and processed meats has been introduced as an approach to amend the nutritional quality and technological properties of the products.

This study explores the effects of four dietary fibers, including orange fiber (OF), wheat fiber (WF), bamboo fiber (BF), and carrot fiber (CF), on shelf life of emulsion-type cooked sausages.

Microbiological and sensory analyses were performed to evaluate the shelf life of the treated products during 60 days of storage under refrigeration condition (4°C).

The results showed that all tested fibers improved the shelf life of the samples. The microbiological examinations revealed that while all the fibers could hinder the growth of spoilage bacteria, OF sample with the mesophilic, psychrotrophic, and lactic acid bacteria counts of 5.95, 4.78, and 5.27 log10 colony-forming unit per gram (CFU/g), respectively showed the highest microbiological quality at the end of the storage. Taste, odor, and overall acceptability of the samples were not significantly affected by the fibers, and texture was the sole sensory attribute that improved in the dietary fiber incorporated products, especially in the OF sample.

According to our results, among the various fibers, OF is recommended to the meat industry to extend the shelf life of cooked sausages.