Microbiological Safety and Quality Control in Meat Processing
A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Meat".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 November 2026 | Viewed by 65
Special Issue Editors
Interests: meat products; frozen meat; thawed drip; myofibrillar proteins; protein denaturation; protein oxidation; gelation; cryoprotection; meat microbiology; freshness; shelf-life
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: fermented meat products; flavor chemistry; functional hydrogels
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Meat is inherently susceptible to spoilage, representing a perishable food commodity prone to microbial degradation and quality deterioration. Microbial proliferation is the primary driver of meat spoilage, often accompanied by enzymatic degradation of proteins and lipids, leading to undesirable changes in texture, flavor, color, and overall sensory quality. These processes not only reduce product acceptability but also pose significant risks to food safety. Ensuring microbiological safety and maintaining quality control throughout meat processing are, therefore, critical challenges for the food industry. Contamination by pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms, along with chemical hazards and processing-induced changes, can compromise the safety, shelf life, and nutritional value of meat products. Consequently, a comprehensive understanding of microbial dynamics, mechanisms of quality deterioration, and effective control strategies is essential.
This Special Issue aims to advance current knowledge on the microbiological safety and quality control of meat and meat products. It seeks contributions that explore spoilage mechanisms from a microbiological perspective, including microbial ecology, metabolic activities, and their interactions with physicochemical and biochemical changes such as oxidation, protein denaturation, and enzymatic reactions.
We welcome original research articles, review papers, and methodological studies addressing a wide range of topics related to microbiological safety and quality control in meat processing. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
- Microbiological hazards and control strategies in meat processing;
- Mechanisms of microbial spoilage and microbial community dynamics;
- Enzymatic and biochemical factors affecting meat quality;
- Oxidative stability and lipid/protein preservation in meat products;
- Rapid detection and real-time monitoring technologies for microbial safety and freshness;
- Innovative preservation and packaging technologies enhance safety and extend shelf life.
Dr. Yuemei Zhang
Dr. Changyu Zhou
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- meat products
- meat quality
- meat microbiology
- freezing and thawing
- preservation techniques
- myofibrillar proteins
- protein chemistry
- heat-induced gelation
- cryoprotection
- shelf-life
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