Quality of frankfurter-type sausage with added pork liver as source of retinol and minerals

Micronutrient deficiencies in developing countries are due to an inadequate diet, an incomplete diet, or low nutrient availability. The prevalent deficiencies are of vitamin A, iron, zinc, and selenium, which occur mainly during old age, pregnancy, and childhood. Foods rich in bioactive compounds, such as pork liver, can be used as ingredients to reformulate traditional meat products. The present work focused on developing a frankfurter-type sausage with pork liver (PL) as a retinol, iron, zinc, and selenium source, and evaluating the sausage’s quality during cold storage. The PL was added at three different concentrations: control (without PL addition), T1 (4% PL), T2 (8% PL), and T3 (12% PL). When the PL in the meat formulation increased, the iron, zinc, selenium, and retinol contents also increased to 20.0 mg/100 g, 11.1 mg/100 g, 130.4 μg/100 g, and 1,188 μg/100 g, respectively. However, lipid oxidation also increased as the PL increased after 60 d of cold storage (0.29, 0.50, 0.61, and 0.74 mg MDA/kg in the control, T1, T2, and T3 treatments, respectively). Adding PL did not affect the fatty acid profile of the products. Additionally, adding PL did not affect the texture profile, but cold storage increased all of the parameters, especially in high pork liver formulations. The addition of PL decreased the L* values, and increased the a* values. The frankfurter-type sausage developed in the present work could be a food with a good retinol content, and a dietary source of minerals such as iron, zinc, and selenium. It could also be used as a food option for sectors of the population with special needs.