Press Release

Media Contact: Thomas Powell, tpowell@meatscience.org

New Resource for Meat Processors Available Through AMSA

Savoy, Illinois, July 31, 2007 - The American Meat Science Association (AMSA) has released the first two in a series of books on meat processing topics. The Meat Processing Technology Series is designed to serve as the authoritative handbook for meat processing science. The first two subjects in the series are Basic Meat Chemistry and Meat Binding: Batters and Emulsions.

Basic Meat Chemistry was written by University of Connecticut meat scientist Cameron Faustman and Purdue meat scientist Darl Swartz. The process by which a live animal is converted into a carcass from which meat cuts are fabricated is characterized by, and can have profound effects on, meat chemistry and ultimately meat quality. The objective of this book is to review the biology and chemistry of postmortem muscle (i.e., meat) to facilitate a fundamental understanding of this food product.

Meat Binding: Batters and Emulsions was authored by a team of scientists led by Youling Xiong of the University of Kentucky. The volume gives an overview of the current understanding of the emulsion theory germane to communiuted meat; that is, batters. Emphasis is devoted to the functional roles that various muscle proteins and added ingredients play in the stabilization of the batters during thermal processing.

The Meat Processing Technology Series development is being led by a team of editors including Wes Osburn (Texas A&M University), Joe Sebranek (Iowa State University) and Collette Schultz Kaster (Farmland Foods). Future volumes in the series are expected to be published regularly over the next two years.

The next volumes will include Manufacturing Processes: Hams, Packaging for Processed Meats, and Sausage Casings.

More information on AMSA and the Meat Processing Technology Series may be found at www.meatscience.org or by calling 217-356-5368.

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The American Meat Science Association is a broad-reaching organization of individuals that discovers, develops, and disseminates its collective meat science knowledge to provide leadership, education, and professional development.

American Meat Science Association
1111 N Dunlap Avenue
Savoy, Illinois 61874
www.meatscience.org