Evolutionary Analysis of Volatile Compounds, Free Amino Acids, Nucleotides and Microbial Diversity in Atlantic Salmon ( <scp> <i>Salmo salar</i> </scp> ) Fillets Under Different Modified Atmosphere Packaging

ABSTRACT Microorganisms are the primary cause of salmon spoilage, significantly affecting its edibility and flavour. This study investigated the effects of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) on the quality, flavour and microbial diversity of Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ) during cold storage. Salmon samples were packaged under the following conditions: air packaging (CK), vacuum packaging (VP) and MAP dominated by CO 2 . Analysis of microbial diversity confirmed that 40% CO 2 effectively reduced the growth of Pseudomonas and increased the relative abundance of Carnobacterium , Serratia and Brochothrix . GC‐IMS analysis revealed that MAP helped maintain the initial flavour profile. CK groups produced more off‐flavour compounds, especially ketones and esters, such as 2‐ethyl furan, 2‐heptanone, 2‐pentanone and amyl acetate. VP fillets generated the fewest flavour compounds. After cold storage, high CO 2 treatments reduced the total volatile basic nitrogen content and suppressed the accumulation of bitter‐tasting amino acids (valine, methionine and phenylalanine) as well as total free fatty acids.