Abstract:

Polyphosphates are commonly used in meat processing as food additives. Once added into meat, they are
hydrolyzed continuously by endogenous polyphosphatases present in meat. In this study, ion chromatography was used to
detect the hydrolysis process of added tetrasodium pyrophosphate (TSPP), sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP) and composite
polyphosphate (m (TSPP) : m (STPP): m (sodium hexametaphosphate) = 3:4:3) in pork longissimus dorsi, fish dorsal muscle
and chicken breast muscle. Inconsistent results were obtained for the hydrolysis of added polyphosphates in muscle from
different animal species. The hydrolysis rate of TSPP in chicken breast muscle was the highest, and TSPP was hydrolyzed
completely within 0.8 h. More TSPP in pork longissimus dorsi was hydrolyzed than in fish dorsal muscle. In addition, STPP
and composite polyphosphate were hydrolyzed fastest upon addition of either of them to pork longissimus dorsi, followed
by addition to chicken breast muscle, and the slowest hydrolysis rate was observed upon addition to fish dorsal muscle. This
study can provide the theoretical basis for regulating the hydrolysis process of polyphosphates and accordingly provide a
guide to the reasonable addition of polyphosphates into muscle from different species.

Key words: polyphosphate, ion chromatography, muscle, hydrolysis, different species