MEAT PROCESSING

preparation of meat for human consumption. Meat is the common term used to describe the edible portion of animal tissues and any processed or manufactured products prepared from these tissues. Meats are often classified by the type of animal from which they are taken. Red meat refers to the meat taken from mammals; white meat refers to the meat taken from fowl; seafood refers to the meat taken from fish and shellfish; and game refers to meat taken from animals that are not commonly domesticated. In addition, most commonly consumed meats are specifically identified by the live animal from which they come. Beef refers to the meat from cattle, veal from calves, pork from hogs, lamb from young sheep, and mutton from sheep older than two years. It is with these latter types of red meat that this section is concerned. Additional reading R. MacRae, R.K. Robinson, and M.J. Sadler (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Food Science, Food Technology, and Nutrition, 8 vol. (1993); and Y.H. Hui (ed.), Encyclopedia of Food Science and Technology, 4 vol. (1992), are general works that cover all aspects of the science of food. P. Fellows, Food Processing Technology: Principles and Practices (1988), is an introductory text. R. Paul SinghDetailed overviews of meat processing include Harold B. Hedrick et al., Principles of Meat Science, 3rd ed. (1994); John R. Romans et al., The Meat We Eat, 13th ed. (1994); and H.R. Cross and A.J. Overby (eds.), Meat Science, Milk Science, and Technology (1988), which includes comparisons of methods of meat production and processing in various countries.Peter J. Bechtel (ed.), Muscle As Food (1986); and A.J. Bailey and N.D. Light, Connective Tissue in Meat and Meat Products (1989), discuss physical and biochemical aspects.Processed-meat science and technology is treated in Herbert W. Ockerman, Sausage and Processed Meat Formulations (1989); and A.M. Pearson and F.W. Tauber, Processed Meats, 2nd ed. (1984). Herbert W. Ockerman and C.L. Hansen, Animal By-Product Processing (1988), covers the production of edible meat products, hides, glue, bone and meat meals, pharmaceutical products, sausage casings, pet foods, and animal waste products. H. Russell Cross