A method for manufacturing a shelf-stable bacon-based food product is provided, the method including: (a) selecting a bacon starting material having a linoleic acid concentration of about 14% or less of total fatty acid content; (b) mixing the selected bacon starting material with at least one natural antioxidant and one or more additional ingredients to provide a bacon-based blend; and (c) freeze-drying the bacon-based blend to provide a shelf-stable bacon-based food product. Bacon-based and bacon-first food products formulated according to the disclosed methods and having enhanced shelf life are also provided herein.

Compositions having surfactant and carbohydrate-degrading activity are produced from Bacillus subtilis strain 6A-1. The compositions include cultured plaque, exudate and fractions having such activity. Methods of producing the compositions and compositions which have increased surfactant and carbohydrate-degrading activity and increased biomass are provided. Proteins and nucleic acid molecules associated with same and methods of identifying compositions comprising the surfactant and carbohydrate-degrading activity are provided. Feeding the compositions to animals results in increased unsaturated and/or decreased saturated fatty acids in the animals and their food products and can also result in increased absorption and/or retention of dietary calcium by said animals.

A meat analogue may include a set protein emulsion, the protein emulsion having a protein and at least one insoluble particle. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the particle can include at least one mineral material selected from the group consisting of silicium, and calcium, such as one or more of rhombohedral calcite, scalenohedral calcite, silicon dioxide, and magnesium oxide; at least one organic material selected from the group consisting of a bone meal, a cartilage meal, a ground crustacean shell, a ground sea fish shell, and a ground egg shell; and/or a gelled vegetable gum, a gelled hydrocolloid, a polymerized vegetable gum, a polymerized hydrocolloid, or a mixture thereof. The meat analogue can be made by extruding the protein emulsion and cooling the extruded emulsion. The meat analogue can be cut into chunks and/or added to another comestible composition such as a gravy or broth.

According one embodiment, a post-harvest processing technology has been developed that enhances the red color of dark cutting beef to a near-normal or normal red color through the use, in one embodiment, of a Rosemary solution in a concentration of between 0.1% and 0.2% Rosemary which is applied to the beef, after which it is stored in a nitrite-embedded film packaging for a predetermined period of time. Various embodiments indicate that that nitrite-embedded packaging and, more particularly, nitrite-embedded packaging in combination with the use of pre-storage antioxidant wash, has the potential to improve surface color of dark-cutting beef.

The present invention relates in general to the field of pet food. In particular the present invention relates to a meat like chunk that can be incorporated into a complete pet food. One embodiment of the present invention is a method of using multiple scraped surface heat exchangers and a steam tunnel to produce a meat like chunk. Another embodiment is a composition of meat ingredients, dried egg product, egg whites, and pea protein that results in a meat like chunk having an improved appearance that closely resembles that of actual pieces of meat.

The present invention is in the field of processing meat. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of processing meat to enhance moisture retention and flavor during storage and cooking by infusing the meat with an aqueous composition containing salt and carbonate salt at a pH in the range of from 10.1 to 11.3.

The disclosure discloses a production method of marbled beef, and belongs to the field of food processing. The processing steps of the method are: freezing, thawing of beef, preparation of a gel emulsion, injection, wrap shaping, quick freezing, cutting and packaging, and hot dipping. The preparation method of the process of the disclosure can realize high-efficiency and standardized industrial production. By injecting beef with the formulated gel emulsion, the fat content and high-quality protein content of the beef can be increased, thereby improving the sensory properties and flavor of the beef, and producing high-quality beef. The gel emulsion for preparing marbled beef of the disclosure is liquid and is low in viscosity when the temperature is higher than 40 C., and therefore the gel emulsion is convenient for injection into beef, and can be uniformly dispersed in beef to form a delicate marble pattern. When the temperature is lower than 20 C., the gel emulsion forms a solid in beef tissue. The beef prepared according to the method of the disclosure shows a white fat pattern at low temperature (0-25 C.), and is closer to natural marbled beef in appearance and structure.

The present invention relates to methods and compositions for improving the quality of meat obtained from an animal. In one aspect, the method relates to feeding an animal a diet containing calcium nitrate. In one aspect, the method relates to improving the redness of the meat color.

A method of providing a carbonate salt for treatment of meat, including providing a bicarbonate salt; heating the bicarbonate salt to convert the bicarbonate salt to a carbonate salt so that the bicarbonate salt is heated to a temperature of at least about 145 F. for a time until detectable production of CO.sub.2 has ceased; and applying the carbonate salt to meat prior to cooking of the meat.

Provided herein is a method of preparing a palatability enhancer for a food composition comprising: a) combining an animal fat, one or more edible agents, an alkaline agent and water at a temperature of up to 45 C. to form a mixture, wherein the edible agents are selected from amino acids, sugars, vitamins, flavorants and flavor precursors, b) heating the mixture to a temperature of 96 C. to 99 C. for at least 35 minutes, and c) obtaining a palatability enhancer from the mixture, wherein the palatability enhancer comprises animal fat in an amount of at least about 80 wt %, and wherein the method is conducted under ambient pressure. Further provided is a method of enhancing the palatablity of a food composition and a method of reducing the odor of animal fat.