Application of pulsed electric fields in meat and fish processing industries: An overview

Abstract

The market demand for new meat and fish products with enhanced physicochemical and nutritional properties attracted the interest of the food industry and academia to investigate innovative processing approaches such as pulsed electric fields (PEF). PEF is an emerging technology based on the application of electrical currents between two electrodes thus inducing electroporation phenomena and enabling a non-invasive modification of the tissues' structure. This review provides an overview of the current knowledge on the use of PEF processing in meat and fish to enhance the physicochemical and nutritional changes, as a preservation method, as well as for improving the extraction of high added-value compounds. PEF treatment had the ability to improve several processes such as preservation, tenderization, and aging. Besides, PEF treatment could be used as a useful strategy to increase water holding properties of fish products as well as for fish drying. Finally, PEF could be also used in both meat and fish foods for by-products valorization, due to its potential to enhance the extraction of high added-value compounds. However, more studies are warranted to completely define specific treatments that can be consistently applied in the industry. This review provides the directions for this purpose in the near future.