Many of the difficulties that meat and animal scientists face when attempting to address specific problems-such as stress susceptibility and poor meat quality in swine-stem from a lack of understanding of the underlying biological mechanisms that drive muscle growth, metabolism, and its conversion to meat. This book provides current knowledge about

Meat as a food; Muscle and associated tissues; Structure and composition of muscle and associated tissues; Growth and development of carcass tissues; The mechanism of muscle contraction; Meat science; Conversion of muscle to meat and development of meat quality; Properties of fresh meat; Principles of meat processing; Microbiology, deterioration and contamination of meat; Storage and preservation of meat; Retail meat merchandising; Meat for food service; Palatability and cookery of meat; Nutritive value of meat; Meat inspection; Meat grading and evaluation; By-products of the meat industry.

The Science of Animal Growth and Meat Technology, Second Edition, combines fundamental science- based and applied, practical concepts relating to the prenatal and postnatal growth of cattle, sheep and pigs. It provides the necessary components to understand the production and growth of livestock for safe and quality meat products and presents an understanding of the principles of meat science and technology that is needed to understand the meat industry. Information on the slaughter process of animals, muscle structure and meat tenderness, meat quality, meat safety, and microbiology makes this a valuable self-study reference for students and professionals entering the field. - Describes principles in muscle metabolism, meat quality and meat safety using case studies - Discusses the microbial safety of meat products, primary pathogens of concern, and pathogen detection - Offers solutions on how to control bacterial growth to improve the safety and quality of meat - Presents a new chapter on packaging for meat and meat products that focuses on flexible film technology, packaging materials and equipment technology - Includes new information on inspection systems prior to slaughter, during slaughter, and the inspection of meat processing systems