2 Drip production in meat refrigeration The quality of fresh meat exposed for retail sale is initially judged on its appearance. The presence of exudate or 'drip,, which accumulates in the container of prepackaged meat or in trays or dishes of unwrapped meat, substantially reduces its sales appeal(Malton and James, 1983). Drip can be referred to by a number of different names including"purge loss, ' press loss'andthaw loss' depending on the method of measurement and when it is measured In general, beef tends to lose proportionately more drip than pork or lamb. Since most of the exudate comes from the cut ends of muscle fibres. small pieces of meat drip more than large intact carcasses. The protein concentration of drip is about 140mgmI-, about 70% of that of meat itself. The proteins in drip are the intracellular, soluble proteins of the muscle cells. The red colour is due to the protein myoglobin, the main pig of mea The problem of drip loss is not however confined to retail packs. The meat industry uses large boneless primal cuts, which are packed in plastic bags, for distribution throughout the trade. These may be stored under refrigeration for many weeks before use and during this time a consider able volume of drip may accumulate in the bag Not only does this exudate look unattractive, but it also represents an appreciable weight loss to the user when the meat is subsequently removed from its container Excessive drip could have a small effect on the eating quality of meat Perceived juiciness is one of the important sensory attributes of meat. Dryness is associated with a decrease in the other palatability attributes, especially with lack of flavour and increased toughness(Pearson, 1994) However, moisture losses during cooking are typically an order of2 Drip production in meat refrigeration The quality of fresh meat exposed for retail sale is initially judged on its appearance. The presence of exudate or ‘drip’, which accumulates in the container of prepackaged meat or in trays or dishes of unwrapped meat, substantially reduces its sales appeal (Malton and James, 1983). Drip can be referred to by a number of different names including ‘purge loss’, ‘press loss’ and ‘thaw loss’ depending on the method of measurement and when it is measured. In general, beef tends to lose proportionately more drip than pork or lamb. Since most of the exudate comes from the cut ends of muscle fibres, small pieces of meat drip more than large intact carcasses. The protein concentration of drip is about 140 mg ml-1 , about 70% of that of meat itself. The proteins in drip are the intracellular, soluble proteins of the muscle cells. The red colour is due to the protein myoglobin, the main pigment of meat. The problem of drip loss is not however confined to retail packs. The meat industry uses large boneless primal cuts, which are packed in plastic bags, for distribution throughout the trade. These may be stored under refrigeration for many weeks before use and during this time a consider￾able volume of drip may accumulate in the bag. Not only does this exudate look unattractive, but it also represents an appreciable weight loss to the user when the meat is subsequently removed from its container. Excessive drip could have a small effect on the eating quality of meat. Perceived juiciness is one of the important sensory attributes of meat. Dryness is associated with a decrease in the other palatability attributes, especially with lack of flavour and increased toughness (Pearson, 1994). However, moisture losses during cooking are typically an order of