ESR Signal in Different Cuts of Irradiated Chicken, Pork and Beef

Electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy was used to detect irradiated meat containing bones (chicken, pork and beef）, to investigate the effect of irradiation dose on the ESR signal intensity and to identify the stability of radicals under 9 weeks of storage. Chicken, pork and beef were irradiated with doses 0, 1, 3, 5 and 7 kGy at room temperature using a Co-60 irradiator. Bones were pieced and dried, which were placed in a quartz tube within an Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrometer resonator cavity. The irradiated bone presented an asymmetric absorption in shape, different from that of a non-irradiated one. The signal intensity of smaller animals are lower than larger species. Variation was observed between samples of the same species depending on the calcification status of the bone. Moreover different irradiation doses produced different signal areas that make possible to estimate the absorbed dose of treated meat. The ESR signal stability after irradiation was stable in even after a 9 week storage at room temperature.