Effect of initial mild curing, with additives, of hog and sheep sausage casings on their microbial quality and mechanical properties after storage at difference temperatures.

Sausage containers, derived from animal intestines, are usually preserved by salting and/or drying. Adequately salted final products are microbiologically fully acceptable. However casings, even those packed in dry salt, sometimes deteriorate in quality. Experiments were performed to improve salting procedures by adding food-grade additives to the salt to improve the microbiological and mechanical properties of the casings. Before storage, casings were cured by slush- or dry-salting with or without additives for 3 weeks, and after that the rinsed and re-salted (dry- or slush-salting) casings were stored for 6 months at different temperatures (10, 20, and 40°C). During storage, growth of halophylic bacteria was observed in control casings (salted, no additives) but not in casings cured with citric or lactic acid and their relative sodium salts. The casings cured with citric acid/Na(3)-citrate had good mechanical properties and filling characteristics when assessed after prolonged storage at 10°C.