Quality assessment of beef using computer vision technology

Imaging technique or computer vision (CV) technology has received huge attention as a rapid and non-destructive technique throughout the world for measuring quality attributes of agricultural products including meat and meat products. This study was conducted to test the ability of CV technology to predict the quality attributes of beef. Images were captured from longissimus dorsi muscle in beef at 24 h post-mortem. Traits evaluated were color value (L*, a*, b*), pH, drip loss, cooking loss, dry matter, moisture, crude protein, fat, ash, thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS), peroxide value (POV), free fatty acid (FFA), total coliform count (TCC), total viable count (TVC) and total yeast-mould count (TYMC). Images were analyzed using the Matlab software (R2015a). Different reference values were determined by physicochemical, proximate, biochemical and microbiological test. All determination were done in triplicate and the mean value was reported. Data analysis was carried out using the programme Statgraphics Centurion XVI. Calibration and validation model were fitted using the software Unscrambler X version 9.7. A higher correlation found in a* (r=0.65) and moisture (r=0.56) with 'a*' value obtained from image analysis and the highest calibration and prediction accuracy was found in lightness (r²c=0.73, r²p=0.69) in beef. Results of this work show that CV technology may be a useful tool for predicting meat quality traits in the laboratory and meat processing industries.