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| Effects of Postmortem Aging on Meat Quality Changes and Flavor Substances in Wuranke Sheep |
| SUN Ruijun, LI Yue, YANG Yuping, TIAN Jianjun, JIN Ye |
| 1. College of Food Science and Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010010, China; 2. Scientific Research Base for Processing Technology Integration of Fresh Beef and Mutton, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Hohhot 010010, China; 3. Inner Mongolia Herdsman Family Food Co. Ltd., Hohhot 010010, China |
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Abstract This study aimed to systematically investigate the regulatory effect of post-slaughter maturation on meat quality and flavor development. Muscle samples from the Wuranke sheep, a distinctive meat sheep breed from Inner Mongolia, were evaluated for quality indicators including shear force, color, pH, and water-holding capacity at different time points postmortem (0, 12, 24, 36, and 48 h). Additionally, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was employed to analyze the dynamic changes in volatile flavor compounds. Results indicated that 36 h postmortem represented the turning point for quality changes of lamb, where both shear force and cooking loss reached high levels, rendering the meat unsuitable for consumption. As aging time increased, lamb flavor improved, with decanal, nonanal, 1-octen-3-ol, and dodecanal identified as key volatile flavor compounds. Several volatile flavor compounds were significantly correlated with meat quality attributes. pH, color, tenderness, and water-holding capacity were strongly correlated with aldehydes and alcohols but weakly correlated with alkanes. Finally, this study recommends prolonging the postmortem aging time to at least 36 h.
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Published: 22 September 2026
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2026, Vol. 40 
