Oil and vitamin E supplementation and colour stability of fresh and processed pork

Oxidation is a major cause of chemical deterioration of food due to its effects on organoleptic qualities such as taste, flavour and colour. Colour type and stability during prolonged exposure to light is a key element of shelf-life Oxidatìon of lipids and myoglobin are strictly related, On the ore hand radicals produced from lipid oxidation appear to accelerate myoglobin oxidation directly or indirectly by weakening muscle reducing systems. On the other hand metmyoglobin and oxymyoglobin appear to be able to catalyse lipid oxidation, the latter probably through hydrogen generated during oxidation. There seems to exist a direct relationship between malonalhdehyde formation and metmyoglobin increase. The research which has been undertaken aimed at studying the effect of increasing muscular content of vitamin E on colour stability of fresh and processed pork.