Estimating Proportion of Meat and Validating Results of Meat Products Using Histochemistry and Image Analysis in Meat Products of Hamadan City, Iran

Meat products are rich sources of proteins. Due to the high prices of raw meats, there is a possibility of fraud in these products. The objectives of this study were to assess chemical characteristics and estimate proportion of skeletal muscle in meat products using histology and image analysis.

 Totally, 50 sausage samples (27 sausages and 23 Bologna sausages) from two brands of meat products in Hamedan City, Iran, were collected and assessed using chemical and histological assays. Histological assessment of the samples used hematoxylin-eosin staining, Masson's trichrome staining and Gomori staining as well as image analysis software.

Results of chemical assessments showed that quantity of moisture was more than standard in 56% of Bologna sausage samples and 66% of sausage samples. Furthermore, quantity of protein was less than standard in 60% of Bologna sausage samples and 85% of sausage samples. Quantity of nitrite in 70% of Bologna sausage samples and 35% of sausage samples exceeded the national standard. Results of the image analysis showed that in 100% of the samples, the quantity of skeletal muscle was lower than the quantity labeled on the product packages.

Results of this study showed that some of the chemical parameters were inconsistent with the national standard. Moreover, Gomori histochemical staining demonstrated a better efficiency for differentiating skeletal muscle sections in Bologna sausage and sausage samples from plant tissues.