Effect of ageing time on the physicochemical characteristics of calcium chloride marinated beef

Abstract The meat industry has developed various innovations and new technologies to meet consumer demand and improve product quality. This study aims to evaluate the effect of ageing time on the physicochemical characteristics of beef marinated in calcium chloride (CaCl 2 ) solution. Meat samples were marinated in 100 mL of CaCl 2 solution with a concentration of 0.3 M for every 100 grams of meat and stored at 4°C. This study used a completely randomised design (CRD) with 4 treatments and 5 replications. The treatment used was ageing time consisting of 0 days (W0), 7 days (W1), 14 days (W2), and 21 days (W3). The results showed that ageing time had a significant effect (P˂0.05) on pH, cooking loss, tenderness, and moisture content but no significant effect (P˃0.05) on the colour of ageing meat. It was concluded that the recommended optimum ageing time is 7 days when the meat achieved the best results regarding pH, cooking loss, tenderness, moisture content, and colour. This study provides important information for the meat industry in determining the ageing time using CaCl 2 , which aims to improve the physicochemical quality of ageing meat products.