One of the most common issues facing the meat and poultry industries today is an increase in the incidence of tough meat. This problem seems to stem from higher consumer demand for increasingly processed products, which in turn forces producers to increase production. To keep pace with market demand, processors have had to evaluate various means of increasing production of boneless meat without negatively affecting overall consumer acceptance.
Many processing factors are known today to affect the overall tenderness of broiler breast fillets. Tenderness is the most predominant determinant of quality and has been described as the most important sensory characteristic of meat thereby having the greatest impact on consumer acceptability. The need to ensure consumer acceptance and the increased recognition of the importance of tenderness has led to the development of instrumental methods for monitoring meat tenderness.
