Chemical composition of industrial and home-made fermented sausages

The aim of the study was to determine and compare chemical composition of fermented sausages manufactured by Croatian meat industry and farm households. Standard analytical methods were employed to determine the proportion of water, raw protein, collagen and meat protein, raw fat and sodium chloride in sausage samples (N=80). In addition, pH value and level of the food additives sodium nitrite and polyphosphate were also tested. Study results showed the proportion of water to be about the same (<40%) in the two categories of sausages, whereas the proportion of raw fat and collagen was statistically significantly higher (P<0.05) and the proportion of raw protein and meat protein lower in industrial sausages. The level of sodium chloride was 4.460.65% and 4.990.90%, and acidity expressed as pH value was 5.11-5.76 and 4.86-6.29 in industrial and home-made sausages, respectively. The level of sodium nitrite was significantly below the level allowed by the act on this type of meat products (<50 mg/kg) in both industrial and home-made sausages. The mean level of polyphosphate was 4.520.74 g/kg in industrial sausages. In all samples of home-made sausages with high protein content, the polyphosphate level significantly exceeded the maximal allowed level of 5 g/kg. Study results pointed to variation in the composition and quality of home-made versus industrial fermented sausages.