Abstract

The Meat and the meat products are excellent sources of the nutrients for the humans. The Meat and the meat products also provide a favorable environment for the microbial growth. In order to prevent the microbiological contamination of the livestock foods, the synthetic preservatives, including the nitrites, the nitrates, and the sorbates, have been widely used in the food industry due to their low cost and the strong antibacterial activity. The Use of the synthetic chemical preservatives is recently being considered by the customers due to the concerns related to the negative health issues. The demand for the natural substances as the food preservatives has increased with the use of the plant-derived and the animal origin products, and the microbial metabolites. The natural preservatives inhibit the growth of the spoilage microorganisms or the food-borne pathogens by increasing the permeability of the microbial cell membranes, the interruption of the protein synthesis, and the cell metabolism.The Natural preservatives can extend the shelf-life and inhibit the growth of the microorganisms. The natural preservatives can influence the food sensory properties, including the flavor, the taste, the color, the texture, and the acceptability of the food.To increase the applicability of the natural preservatives, a number of the strategies, including the combinations of different preservatives or the food preservation methods, such as the active packaging systems and the encapsulation, have been explored.The applications of the natural preservatives for the meat and the meat products.