Tackling ground meat challenges

ONCE primal cuts are removed, meat producers stay with less noble meat cuts that they have to valorize. Restructuration of meat is a good way to extract value out of them. Nevertheless, processed ground meat suffers from its association with high fat levels, possible impact on cholesterol and other health issues.

Finding ways to improve processed ground meat is driven by convenience, clean labelling and pleasure enhancement, but on top of those trends, cost optimisation is the main challenge. Convenience is a key driver and is about time saving and ready prepared. Otherwise, clean labelling becomes a must when considering launching a new product or reformulating existing ones. It consists of removing additives/preservatives and avoiding main allergens, gluten, and lactose. Meat quality and texture, and creativity around flavours, presentation and visual aspects all contribute to the pleasure enhancement. But meat developers and producers have to prioritise cost optimisation.

Fibres as binder, filler

To produce attractive and cost effective processed ground meat products, or to cope with limited availability of meat, producers need specific ingredients. That’s a reason why fibres are increasingly used in processed ground meat products such as burgers, meatballs, sausages, as binder or meat filler. One of those fibres is Swelite? which is a natural and fat-free functional ingredient composed of dietary fibres and starch. It is extracted from yellow pea by physical process and partial separation of starch and cellular walls. This GMO-free product does not contain gluten and lactose, and is also kosher and halal-certified. Furthermore, pea is not included in the list of the allergenic ingredients that have to be clearly mentioned on the packaging of foodstuffs. Swelite can be labelled as “pea fibre, pea starch” or “vegetable fibre, starch”.

The product has the ability to bind 10 parts of water by capillary uptake in cold conditions. Gelatinisation of the linked starch granules increases the water binding capacity. It stabilises fat and water in typical ratios by capillary uptake. In cold emulsions, this pea fibre can stabilise 1/5/5 emulsions based on pork fat, poultry fat (or skin) or vegetable oil. The obtained paste is stable, non-sticky and easy to incorporate. During heat treatment the paste becomes firmer (no gel-texture).

Because of its high water retention, Swelite increases product stability and forms a matrix with water within the meat. This paste is freeze-thaw stable, stable to strong heat treatment and not influenced by pH. As the fibre binds water like a sponge and releases water only under strong mechanical action, it provides a tender and juicy texture. Finally, acting as a shape retention agent, it keeps the product in its original form.

Reduce costs, optimise yields

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