Changes in chemical and physicochemical characteristics during the production of traditional Sremska sausage

The aim of this trial was to investigate changes in chemical and physico-chemical parameters during the production of traditional Sremska sausage (dry fermented sausage) from pork of three pig breeds: Mangalitsa (MA), Moravka (MO) and Swedish Landrace (SL). Analyses of all variants of sausages were carried out after stuffing (day 0) and on production days 3, 7, 14 and 21. The reduction in moisture during production caused the increase in protein, fat and ash contents (p<0.001) in all three variants of sausages, were found to be within the range for this type of sausages. Higher fat content in MA and MO sausages compared to SL variant was most likely a result of the different chemical composition of the meat from pigs of autochthonous breeds. All three sausage variants had a similar final pH value, but the mildest drop of pH was determined in MA sausages. Pig breed significantly affected (p<0.05) all three indicators of oxidative changes (thiobarbituric acid value, peroxide value and free fatty acid content). It was found that they were higher in SL compared with MA and MO sausages and to significantly increase during the production process.