China Proposes New Standards for Fresh and Frozen Meat Products

During China’s two sessions, Qiao Xiaoling, a CPPCC (China People’s Political Consultative Conference) member and deputy director of Beijing Academy of Food Sciences, advised on ^[1] the optimization of GB 2707-2016 National Food Safety Standard of Fresh (Frozen) Livestock and Poultry Products ^[2]. Plans to optimize the standard include:

• Add limits for indicator bacteria and pathogenic bacteria

In China, fresh and frozen livestock and poultry products (hereafter meat products) are mainly consumed as non-instant food and will be cooked before consumption. That’s why no requirements have been set up for indicator bacteria and pathogenic bacteria in the national standard.

Qiao clarified, “Without requirements on these indicators, it is hard to stop contaminated meat products entering the market. Furthermore, the high microorganism level in raw meat will also result in an excessive microorganism level in processed meat products. Thus, it is crucial to control the maximum level of microorganisms in fresh and frozen meat products.”

• Separate the limits for fresh meat and frozen meat

At present, both fresh and frozen meat are subject to the same requirements specified in GB 2707-2016. However, these two categories are quite different in sensory and physicochemical indicators. 

Take TVB-N (Total Volatile Base Nitrogen) as an example, which is the only physicochemical indicator regulated in GB 2707 for both fresh and frozen meat. During the storage of fresh meat, TVB-N is a sensitive indicator to show the freshness of the meat. It is suitable to be used as an indicator of protein oxidation and degradation. For frozen meat products, fat oxidation is more important.

• Specify Supervision Requirements for Thawed Meat

Thawed meat is often misrepresented and sold as fresh meat. After thawing, the color of meat is different from fresh meat. Repeated thawing and refrigeration also pose a heightened risk of microbial contamination. Moreover, the price of fresh meat is usually higher than that of frozen meat products due to storage and transportation cost, etc. It is proposed to detail the rules on the sale of fresh, frozen, and thawed meat.