Synergistic Effect of Chitosan and Clove Oil on Raw Poultry Meat

Poultry raw meat is a perishable and nutritious food and considered as a prime source of protein. Its high moisture content favors the bacterial growth and leads to deteriorative changes. Bacterial contamination and lipid oxidation reduce the quality and stability of chicken meat and ultimately result in social health concern. For the purpose of extending shelf life of meat and to prevent further bacterial contamination, antimicrobial based edible coatings (food grade material) are being widely used now days which also maintain the quality of meat. In present study, antimicrobial potential of chitosan and clove oil as coating material was checked on quality attributes of fresh poultry meat. The study was divided in to three phases; first phase deals with preparation of edible coating for its application on meat. In second phase, proximate composition of fresh raw chicken meat was checked prior to application of coating material followed by storage at refrigeration temperature (24 days). In last phase, chitosan based coated and uncoated (control) samples were studied periodically for microbial analysis (TPC) and sensory characteristics. The obtained results were subjected to statistical analysis and a significant difference (p ≤ 0.05) was observed among treatments. On over all basis, it was concluded that treatment, T4, containing 1% chitosan solution +2% starch solution +1.5 mL clove oil performed best due to their synergistic barrier properties against aerobic microbes and increased the shelf stability of raw meat in comparison to uncoated meat samples.