Influence of Horse Age, Marinating Substances, and Frozen Storage on Horse Meat Quality.
Authors: Stanisławczyk Renata, Rudy Mariusz, Gil Marian, Duma-Kocan Paulina, Żurek Jagoda
Journal: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
Summary
# Editorial Summary Horse meat quality is influenced by multiple interconnected factors, yet practical guidance for optimising meat characteristics remains limited—prompting this investigation into how animal age, marinating treatments, and frozen storage interact to affect meat composition and sensory properties. Researchers examined longissimus thoracis samples from 12 horses aged 4–7 and 8–12 years, applying various marinating substances (malic acid, lactic acid, phosphates, and combinations thereof) before measuring physical properties including pH, texture parameters (shear force, hardness, chewiness), colour values, moisture loss, and sensory attributes across a 3-month frozen storage period. Older horses yielded meat with significantly higher fat content and substantially greater textural toughness across all measured parameters, whilst malic acid reduced pH in younger animals but phosphates paradoxically increased pH in older horses; notably, neither marinating approach meaningfully reduced cutting force regardless of age group. Perhaps most relevant to meat processors and handlers, acid-based marinades (lactic and malic) increased both thermal and forced moisture loss compared to controls, with colour degradation evident after 3 months frozen storage—suggesting that whilst these treatments may enhance some sensory attributes through age-dependent mechanisms, they compromise water-holding capacity. These findings highlight that age-matched marinating strategies may be necessary to improve consumer-facing quality metrics, though the authors acknowledge substantial gaps remain in translating chemical interventions into commercially viable improvements.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Horse age significantly impacts meat quality parameters; older horses produce tougher, fattier meat requiring different marinating and cooking strategies than younger animals
- •Marinating substance selection matters: malic/lactic acids improve tenderness in young horse meat but increase drip loss, while phosphates are more suitable for older horse meat
- •Extended frozen storage (3+ months) with acid-based marinades notably changes meat color characteristics, which may affect consumer perception and marketability
Key Findings
- •Older horses (8-12 years) had significantly higher fat content in meat compared to younger horses (4-7 years)
- •Malic acid decreased pH in young horse meat (p < 0.05), while phosphates increased pH in older horse meat (p < 0.05)
- •Shear force, hardness, stiffness, gumminess, and chewiness increased significantly with horse age (p < 0.05)
- •Lactic and malic acid marinating caused decreased red color (a* values 3.43-4.67) and increased yellow color (b* values 1.71-3.81) after 3 months frozen storage