Evaluation of fresh meat quality by Hyperspectral Imaging (HSI), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI): A review

Abstract

The development of non-destructive methodologies based on Hyperspectral Imaging (HSI), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques to determine quality characteristics of fresh meat has been reviewed in this study. It has been focused primarily on research published in the last decade, and has placed particular attention on the instrumentation, data acquisition and main applications of each technique, finding a wide variety of possibilities for systems and methodologies as well as evidence of accurate and promising results. Most samples analysed were pork and beef, followed by lamb and chicken, with few studies on fresh meat from rabbit and duck. The overall evaluation is that work has been performed primarily in an experimental way but generally still lacks real application in the meat industry. In that respect, these non-destructive techniques should be improved, especially regarding speed, price and influence of external factors.

Keywords: Fresh meat; Hyperspectral imaging; Magnetic resonance imaging; Non-destructive analysis; Nuclear magnetic resonance.