Histological assessment of the quality, safety, and fraudulence risk of commercially frozen processed beef and chicken meat products

Abstract

Ensuring the quality and safety of frozen beef and chicken products is crucial for protecting human health, especially when food adulteration poses a major challenge. To fulfill this target, 120 samples of commercial frozen processed beef meat (beef burger, cocktail beef sausage, beef hotdog, beef salami) and chicken products (chicken burger, chicken cocktail sausage, chicken nuggets, chicken kofta), 15 samples each, were histologically examined to identify various unfavorable tissue types. Samples were subjected to tissue sectioning, then they were stained using both hematoxylin & eosin (H&E) and Crossmon’s trichrome stain to detect unauthorized plant or undesirable animal tissues. The findings revealed highly significant (P ≤ 0.001) adulteration in the majority of examined commercial frozen beef and chicken product samples, with the presence of unauthorized animal tissues such as lung, heart, smooth muscle, blood vessels, brain, intestine, uterus of a bitch, and excessive plant tissues with low skeletal muscle content. This study demonstrated the effectiveness of histological examination in detecting adulteration and evaluating the quality and safety of frozen beef and chicken products. The results highlight the need for strict control over formulation processes and continuous monitoring and inspection to ensure the quality and safety of frozen meat products.