Effect of Radiation and Conventional Processing on the Thiamin Content of Pork

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Abstract
A study was undertaken to compare the effect of ionizing radiation and thermal processing on the thiamin content of pork. Ground pork was either thermally processed in cans or, after enzyme‐inactivation, irradiated in pouches with electrons or gamma rays. Thiamin in treated and untreated samples was measured by the thiochrome method. The results show that thiamin retention in pork decreases as the irradiation dose increases, but that retention increases as the temperature of irradiation decreases. Moreover, irradiation with gamma rays (low dose‐rate) leads to lower retention than irradiation with electrons (high dose‐rate). Results also show that conventional thermal processing causes loss of thiamin comparable to or greater than irradiation at effective processing conditions for sterilization.