Microbiological, chemical and sensory assessment of mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) stored under modified atmosphere packaging

Wild mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis), were packaged aerobically under vaccum packaging(VP) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP (50%/50% CO2/N2: M1, 80%/20% CO2/N2: M2, 65%/35% CO2/N2: M3), and stored at 2 ± 1 °C. Quality evaluation was carried out using microbiological, chemical and sensory analyses. Microbiological results revealed that M2 and M3 delayed microbial growth compared to M1. Of the chemical indices determined, the TVB-N and TMA-N values of M2 remained lower than the proposed acceptability limits of 35 mg N/100 g and 8 mg N/100 g, respectively, up to 8 days of storage. All of the MAP and VP mussel samples exceeded these limits after 12 days of storage. All samples retained desirable sensory characteristics during the first 8 days of storage. Based on microbiological and chemical analyses along with sensory evaluation, M2 and M3 gave a longer shelf-life compared with VP and M1. M2 gas mixture was the most effective for mussel preservation.