Fish Freshness Decay Measurement with a Colorimetric Array

Abstract

The development of rapid non-destructive techniques to determine fish quality and shelf-life is vital to guarantee food safety. The aim of this study was to evaluate a new optoelectronic nose composed by eight sensing materials prepared by the incorporation of pH indicators and chromogenic reagents selective to metabolites into inorganic materials (aluminium oxide and silica gel) in the shelf-life assessment of fresh sea bream in cold storage. Physico-chemical and microbial analyses were carried out periodically throughout the cold storage, as well as colour measurements on the colorimetric array. The results obtained using the chromogenic array were in accordance with those obtained from physico-chemical and microbial analyses, which showed a clear loss of freshness from day 4 to day 7. This confirms the potential usefulness of colorimetric reagents for detection of sea bream spoilage.