The shelf life of the meat and the meat products is the storage time until spoilage, which is a complex condition in
which the combination of biological and physico-chemical activities may interact and make the product
unacceptable for the human consumption.
A maximum acceptable microbial level and/or unacceptable off-odor and off-flavor identify the exact point of
spoilage, which is strictly dependent on the initial numbers and types of contaminating microorganisms, their
growth, lipid oxidation, and autolytic enzymatic reactions. Meat and fish, due to their physico-chemical
characteristics, are excellent basic nutrients for microbial activity. Indeed, the pH, aw (activity water) and high
moisture values can support the growth of a wide variety of microorganisms.