The quantity of different smoke components
accumulated in the meat depends on
the temperature, humidity, agitation, and
composition of the smoke; the properties of
the components, particularly their volatility
and solubility; the characteristics of the
surface of the product; and the duration of
smoking. Wet surfaces absorb about 20 times
more phenols than dry ones. The published
data on the total amount of smoke components
absorbed by meat products are incomplete
and vary within a broad range. The
large range of values is caused both by the
properties of the products and the parameters
of smoking, as well as by differences in the
analytical procedures applied by various
investigators. The use of phenol as a standard
in colorimetric determination of total phenols
may lead to signifi cant underestimation,
since the amount of phenol in smoked meats
is rather low. The content of phenols in different
smoked sausages, according to published
data, ranges from about 0.02 to
300 μ g/g. In smoked pork belly strips and
summer sausage, the total recovery of phenols
was, according to Lustre and Issenberg
(1970) , about 280 μ g/g and 60 μ g/g, respectively.
The composition of the absorbed
fraction depends more on the conditions
of smoking, especially the humidity of the
surface of the meats, than on the concentration
of individual phenols in the smoke. The
quantity of formaldehyde in cold smoked
goods may be as high as 20 – 40 μ g/g. The
amount of formaldehyde in different assortments
of sausages may reach 2 to 50 μ g/g;
the surface layers of some products may
contain about fi ve times more than the inner
layer.