Sex Does Not Affect the Colour, Shear Stress, and Lipid Oxidation of Pork Meat, but Feed-Added Plant-Derived Extracts, Storage Time and Packaging Type Do.

Essential plant oils added to products, packaging or animal feed are used as a method of preserving food quality because they extend the shelf-life of meat due their antioxidant and/or antimicrobial capacity. This action can be achieved with the correct packaging that preserves the meat's quality and safety. This study investigates the effects of plant-derived extracts (PDE) on the meat quality and shelf-life of pork packaged in vacuum or modified atmosphere packaging (MAP). Thirty-six barrows and thirty-six gilts were allocated into three experimental groups: the control, garlic extract (1 kg/ton of feed) and oregano-rosemary oil (2 kg/ton of feed) with the same base-diet. Two packaging were used: vacuum and a commercial MAP (70% O 2 , 30% CO 2 ). The meat fat content, pH, colour, TBARS values and Warner-Bratzler shear stress were investigated. The sex of the animals did not affect any of the studied variables, whereas PDE affected some of the colour variables and the shear stress; both the packaging type and the storage time affected the colour variables, lipid oxidation and shear stress. Vacuum-packed meat was more stable in terms of colour, lipid oxidation and shear stress than MAP-packed meat.