(MEATPOULTRY.com, April 18, 2002)

Rinse & chill breaks new ground in safety and quality

A St. Paul, Minn. firm is garnering high praise from the red meat industry for developing a technology that not only enhances tenderness but also improves food safety. Rinse & chill, a technology patented by MPSC, Inc., has been proven to reduce pathogens, lower cholesterol and extend the shelf life of beef while enhancing its tenderness and color.

Rinse & chill utilizes vascular infusion, which involves rinsing a chilled solution of sugar and salt through the cardiovascular system of carcasses. Researchers say the process removes a majority of the residual blood, cleans the carcasses, lowers pH and temperature and reduces levels of E. coli and coliform bacteria. Lower pH levels, says Warner Ide, vice president and chief operating officer with MPSC, combined with temperature control results in meat with a uniform red color that is consistently tender and juicy. "Rinse & chill removes blood more effectively, taking away a nutrient considered by scientists to be critical for the growth and survival of certain microorganisms, such as E. coli and Salmonella," Ide says.

The technology is believed to be one way small- and mid-size processors can stand apart from their larger-volume competitors. Rinse & chill is currently used at G&C Packing, Colorado Springs, Colo.; Booker Packing Co., Booker, Texas; and in several plants in Australia. "I feel good about helping small- to medium-size plants," says Ide. "They need help in distinguishing and differentiating their product."

The advances made by MPSC have gotten the praise and support from researchers and influential industry players, including Rosemary Mucklow, executive director of the National Meat Association, Oakland, Calif. "This is a very promising new technology," says Mucklow. "Data is beginning to show that it is a good intervention for reducing microbial load and addressing sanitary dressing."

Darrel Bartholomew, a meat scientist with AURI, says the quality enhancements can redefine what is considered high-quality cuts. "This technology can be used to increase palatability in all types of cattle, especially in mature or low-quality grade animals," Bartholomew says.

Industry experts say technology that enhances food safety and quality simultaneously is as rare as it is groundbreaking. Victor Matthew, owner of Black Bear Restaurant, Green Mountain Falls, Colo., says rinse & chill is "the first major breakthrough in meat production and processing in perhaps 100 years."

MPSC’s Ide says the company has developed a useful technology that he hopes will raise the bar throughout the industry. But it is the first of many steps, he says. "While there is no such thing as a silver bullet, there’s also nothing else out there like this."

(MEATPOULTRY.com, April 18, 2002)