Monitoring of sausage products sold in Sichuan Province, China: a first comprehensive report on meat species’ authenticity determination

Abstract

Presently, there is growing concern worldwide regarding the adulteration of meat products. However, no reports on determining meat authenticity have been reported in China. To verify labelling compliance and evaluate the existence of fraudulent practices, 250 sausage samples were purchased from local markets in Sichuan Province and analysed for the presence of chicken, pork, beef, duck and genetically modified soybean DNA using real-time and end-point PCR methods, providing a Chinese case study on the problem of world food safety. In total, 74.4% (186) of the samples were properly labelled, while the other 25.6% (64) were potentially adulterated samples, which involved three illicit practices: product removal, addition and substitution. The most common mislabelling was the illegal addition of, or contamination with, duck. Therefore, meat authenticity monitoring should be routinely conducted. Additionally, the strict implementation of the nation’s food safety laws, along with regular surveillance, should be compulsory to alleviate and deter meat adulteration.

Detection of Beef Adulterated with Pork Using a Low-Cost Electronic Nose Based on Colorimetric Sensors

“…The improvement in the average incomes of many has caused an upsurge in worldwide demand for meat [1]. However, the high commercial value coupled with the increased demand for meat has attracted the attention of adulterators for several years [2].As a result, several concerns have been raised especially due to the continuous reports of adulterants in meat products that compromise their safety or quality [3,4]. Despite the risk of revenue lost through product recalls, arrest, and prosecution, somehow meat adulteration continues to attract many people.…”

A 16S Next Generation Sequencing Based Molecular and Bioinformatics Pipeline to Identify Processed Meat Products Contamination and Mislabelling

“…Meat species identification is a subject that has received special attention worldwide, mainly due to the increased incidence of fraudulent practices that have been reported [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]. These reports have led to consumers demanding the accurate identification and labelling of meat products [ 5 ]. Incidents of meat species substitution include contamination of a product with a cheaper-priced protein.…”

Detection of species adulteration in meat products and Mozzarella-type cheeses using duplex PCR of mitochondrial cyt b gene: A food safety concern in Bangladesh

“…Several studies have been performed using multiplex PCR for mitochondrial genes for verification of meat species ( Hou et al, 2015 , Zarringhabaie et al, 2011 ) and identification of milk species ( Dalmasso et al, 2011 , Csikos et al, 2016 , López-Calleja et al, 2005 ). Others report using ribosomal RNA ( Song et al, 2019 , Golinelli et al, 2014 ). Besides species identification, Halal authentication (considering pork) has also been studied in some countries, such as Malaysia, Egypt, and Iran ( Murugaiah et al, 2009 , Chuah et al, 2016 ; Yakoobie & Sadek, 2016; Doosti et al, 2014 ).…”