Application of Water Extract from Honey-Suckle (Lonicera Japonica Thunb) Leaves and Its Effect on the Quality of Fresh Chicken Meat

The preservation of meat and meat products has been widely concerned, the development of natural food preservatives is currently one of the hot spots of food preservation research. The objective of this study was to explore the feasibility of Honeysuckle(Lonicera japonica Thunb)leaf extract as a preservative for meat products.The fresh-keeping effect of hon­eysuckle leaf water extract (WE-HL) was studied in fresh chickens, pH value, colour, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), volatile basic nitrogen (VBN), texture profile of fresh chickens containing WE-HL, butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), respectively, were determined during 7-day storage at 4°?. WE-HL can inhibit the oxidation of protein and fat in fresh chicken and has not significantly changed the colour and texture of fresh chicken during storage (P>0.05). Its ability to inhibit lipid oxidation was higher than that of BHA and BHT. WE-HL is noted to be a promising fresh chicken preservative.