Composition and method for producing a marbled meat product

Abstract

The invention relates to a marbling composition for providing an artificial marbling to meat. The marbling composition comprises 40-70 wt.% of water; 0.05-5.0 wt.% of emulsifying protein derived from plant or animal; 0.01-5.0 wt.% of transglutaminase; and 20-40 wt.% of an oil derived from plant or animal. After injection of the marbling composition in the meat, the actual marbling forms as a result of the catalytic action of the transglutaminase. It likely forms some kind of matrix from the emulsifying protein that is covalently bonded to the meat, thereby forming the marbling. This way of meat marbling circumvents the use of elevated temperatures that forms part of the conventional procedure for meat marbling. This makes the marbling process more energy-efficient and less prone to the introduction of microbial contamination. Moreover, the marbled meat product obtained in this way is more stable during cooking and is then also less susceptible to become expelled by the meat.

Description

[0001] COMPOSITION AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING A MARBLED MEAT PRODUCT

[0002] FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The invention relates to a composition for producing a marbled meat product, to a method for producing a marbled meat product and to a marbled meat product obtainable by such method.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] Marbled meat is a red meat that contains various amounts of intramuscular fat and connective tissue that accumulates within the muscle and between the muscle fiber bundles. This accumulated substance has the appearance of visible white flecks or streaks, giving it an appearance similar to marble. The substance itself is therefore named a ‘marbling’. Marbled meat is rich in flavor and nutrition, and is generally appreciated by human consumers for its good taste and appealing mouthfeel (rich, fatty, tender and juicy).

[0006] Because not all red meat has a natural marbling, it is a common practice in the food industry to artificially introduce a marbling in a meat product (‘meat marbling’). This should then give the impression of a natural marbling as formed in the meat during the lifetime of an animal. Such artificial meat marbling is often performed by a post-mortem injection of a marbling composition into the meat.

[0007] Conventional marbling compositions usually comprise a fat, in particular an animal fat, which makes them solid at room temperature. A marbling process then involves heating the marbling composition so that it melts and becomes pumpable and injectable. The meat that receives the marbling composition, on the other hand, is kept at substantially lower temperatures. In this way, an immediate solidification of the marbling composition occurs upon its injection into the meat, to thereby yield the marbling.

[0008] The required heating of the marbling composition is however a drawback because this makes the marbling process energy intensive and increases the chance on microbial contamination of the meat as the highprocessing temperature of the marbling composition stimulates the development of micro-organisms in the marbling composition prior to the injection. This can however not simply be solved by lowering the injection temperature of the marbling composition (since that decreases its injectability) or by using a fat with a lower melting point (since this has a negative effect on the quality of the marbling).

[0009] Another drawback of a conventional marbling composition is that its handling and application are complicated. Tubing and piping in machines are prone to clogging when the flow of molten fat comes to a halt due to e.g. a machine malfunctioning, leading to a prolonged downtime of the machine and the deployment of extra manhours. Moreover, as the fat is often handled at temperatures of 55 °C or higher in quantities exceeding 200 L, this may form a hazard to process operators. The handling of conventional molten marbling compositions thus requires specific equipment and expertise that is not needed if the marbling compositions can be pumped and injected at ambient temperatures or lower.

[0010] As regards conventional marbled meat products themselves, it is unfavorable that their marbling melts upon cooking the meat and so becomes less noticeable. Ultimately, the molten marbling may leave the meat as liquefied fat, which gives a much different taste to the meat. Moreover, when this occurs when the meat is at a barbecue, the fat can inflame and so impair the meat and / or impose a fire hazard.

[0011] An alternative procedure for meat marbling is for example described in US2020196642A1 , where a gel emulsion is used as a marbling composition. The structural integrity of the resulting marbling is mainly derived from its gelling properties and the congealing of beef fat. Marblings obtained in this way have however an undesired behavior during cooking of the meat since the marbling liquefies and drips out of the meat.

[0012] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a marbling composition from which a marbled meat product can be prepared in an energyefficient way and / or with a decreased chance on microbial contamination. It is also an object that the marbling of meat does not involve the handling of a marblingcomposition that is solid, or at least not injectable, at ambient temperatures or lower.

[0014] It is also an object to provide a marbled meat product that has a better taste and / or a better mouth feeling than conventional marbled meat products do. It is also an object that the marbling in a marbled meat product liquefies to a lesser extant than a marbling in a conventional marbled meat product does when it is heated.

[0015] It is in particular an object to provide a marbled meat product that has a better taste and / or a better mouth feeling.

[0016] It has now been found that one or more of these objects can be reached by applying a particular marbling composition. Accordingly, in a first aspect, the present invention relates to a marbling composition comprising a) 40-70 wt.% of water;

[0017] b) 0.05-5.0 wt.% of emulsifying protein derived from plant or animal;

[0018] c) 0.01-5.0 wt.% of transglutaminase;

[0019] d) 10-50 wt.% of an oil derived from plant or animal.

[0020] In a second aspect, the invention relates to a method for producing a marbled meat product, the method comprising

[0021] - providing a meat product;

[0022] - providing a marbling composition as described above;

[0023] - injecting the marbling composition into the meat product.

[0024] In a third aspect, the invention relates to a marbled meat product obtainable by the above method.

[0025] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 schematically displays a cutting surface of a red meat product before introducing the artificial marbling according to the invention.

[0027] Figure 2 schematically displays a cutting surface of a red meat product after it had received an artificial marbling according to the invention.

[0028] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0029] The invention relates to a composition for producing a marbled meat product, hereinafter often denoted as ‘marbling composition’. A marblingcomposition of the invention is suitable for injection into meat, in particular red meat, to thereby form an artificial marbling in the meat. The composition is a water-oil emulsion; therefore an emulsifier is present in an appropriate amount. The emulsifier in a marbling composition of the invention is an emulsifying protein, which is a protein derived from plant or animal, such as pea protein isolate, turkey protein or beef protein. The amount of emulsifying protein present in a marbling composition of the invention is usually in a range of 0.05-5.0 wt.%. It may also be present in a range of 0.1-2 wt.%.

[0030] Also present in the marbling composition is a transglutaminase enzyme. This enzyme is capable of catalyzing the formation of an isopeptide bond between a y-carboxamide group of glutamine residue side chains and an s-amino group of lysine residue side chains under the release of ammonia (a transglutamination). In this way, it can realize covalent bonds between different parts or portions of proteinaceous matter. It may, for example connect different portions of meat, such as walls in a channel that are formed by a needle when the marbling composition is injected. Transglutaminase typically also catalyzes the binding of emulsifying protein to meat protein and may also catalyze the inter-protein binding of emulsifying protein (i.e. it then catalyzes the formation of covalent connections between different molecules of emulsifying protein). Commercially available transglutaminase is usually prepared via a microbial fermentation.

[0031] After injection of the marbling composition, the actual marbling slowly forms as a result of the catalytic action of the transglutaminase. The marbling composition that is fluid upon injection then slowly sets or hardens to form some kind of matrix, thereby loosing the ability to flow and gaining consistency and / or firmness. It is contemplated that this solidification of the emulsion is caused by (1) the binding of the emulsifying protein to the meat; and (2) the inter-protein binding. The resulting matrix immobilizes the other components of the marbling composition and is then essentially present as the marbling in the meat.

[0032] The emulsifying protein is preferably capable of acting as a substrate for the transglutaminase enzyme, so that it can participate in a transglutamination reaction. This then typically yields covalent bonds between the emulsifying protein molecules (inter-protein bonds) and between and the emulsifying protein and the meat product (protein-meat bonds).In principle, any emulsifying protein that is capable of acting as a substrate for the transglutaminase enzyme in the marbling composition is suitable for application in the marbling composition to achieve the solidification and thus the meat marbling. The emulsifying protein then has the required y-carboxamide groups and / or e-amino groups available for the transglutamination.

[0033] The degree of solidification may be tuned by selecting an emulsifying protein with a particular ability to bind to the meat protein and / or to undergo the inter-protein binding.

[0034] For example, by selecting an emulsifying protein with a high amount of Y-carboxamide groups and / or s-amino groups, more covalent bonds can be formed by the action of the transglutaminase enzyme, yielding a firmer and / or more consistent matrix that has a stronger connection to the meat.

[0035] The emulsifying protein in a marbling composition of the invention may be derived from an animal selected from the group of poultry such as chicken, turkey, duck, goose and pheasant; bovine animals such as cattle, buffalo, bison, yak and antelope; pig; sheep such as lamb and mutton; goat; deer such as elk and moose; horse; camel such as dromedary, bactrian camel and alpaca; kangaroo; and fish.

[0036] The amount of transglutaminase present in a marbling composition of the invention is usually in a range of 0.01-5.0 wt.%. It may also be present in a range of 0.5-2.0 wt.%.

[0037] A marbling composition of the invention may comprise a number of optional components. For example, it comprises one or more amino acids (e.g. amino acids as such, not part of a polypeptide). Amino acids may also be present as an amino acid salt. Their function is usually to stabilize the emulsion. If present in a marbling composition of the invention, the amount of amino acids is usually in a range of 0.5-8.0 wt.%. It may also be present in a range of 1.0-4.0 wt.%.

[0038] A marbling composition of the invention may also comprise fibers, typically vegetable fibers. These then have the function of thickening agent, which may promote the blocking of drip channels. If present in a marbling composition of the invention, the amount of fibers is usually in a range of 0.05-5 wt.%, in particular in a range of 0.10-2.0 wt.%. Fibers may also be present in a range of 1.0-4.0 wt.%.A marbling composition of the invention may also comprise a cryoprotectant to reduce formation of ice crystals when a marbled meat product of the invention is being frozen. Such cryoprotectants may for example be sugars, polysaccharides or polyols and may be present in the marbling composition in an amount of 1-20 wt.%, in particular in an amount of 10-15 wt.%. A preferred cryoprotectant is maltodextrin, which may also be present in the amounts mentioned hereabove.

[0039] A marbling composition of the invention may also comprise sodium chloride, which has the function of stabilizing the emulsion. It may also improve the taste of the meat product, in particular it may improve the perception of the marbling. Sodium chloride may be present in the marbling composition of the invention in an amount of 0.05-8 wt.%, in particular 0.1-5 wt.%.

[0040] A marbling composition of the invention may also comprise calcium citrate, for example in an amount of 0.05-2.0 wt.%, in particular in an amount of 0.10-1.0 wt.%.

[0041] A marbling composition of the invention may also comprise natural flavors.

[0042] The oil in a marbling composition of the invention may in principle be any food-grade oil, typically a vegetable oil or an oil of animal origin. It is for example selected from the group of sun flower oil, olive oil, rape seed oil, canola oil, safflower oil and soybean oil.

[0043] An oil that is applied in the present invention usually comprises one or more triglycerides. The triglyceride content is then usually at least 50 wt.%. It may for example be at least 75 wt.%, at least 90 wt.%, at least 93 wt.%, at least 95 wt.%, at least 97 wt.%, at least 98 wt.%, at least 99 wt.%, at least 99.5 wt.%, at least 99.8 wt.% or at least 99.9 wt.%. One or more other components that may be present in such an oil may be selected from the group of free fatty acids (saturated or unsaturated), phospholipids such as lecithin, sterols, vitamins such as vitamin A, D, E or K, pigments and antioxidants. Usually, the oil is a triglyceride mixture.

[0044] The oil usually has a melting point of 20 °C or less. Preferably, the oil has a melting temperature of 10 °C or less and more preferably of 5 °C or less. The oil may also have a melting point of 0 °C or less.When the oil has a melting trajectory, then the end point of the melting trajectory ( / .e. the temperature at which the oil has become completely molten) is usually 20 °C or less. Preferably, it is 10 °C or less and more preferably it is 5 °C or less. It may even be 0 °C or less.

[0045] The oil content of a marbling composition of the invention is usually in a range of 20-40 wt.%, in particular in a range of 25-40 wt.%, more in particular in a range of 25-35 wt.%.

[0046] The water content of a marbling composition of the invention is usually in a range of 45-65 wt.%, in particular in a range of 50-60 wt.%.

[0047] In a particular embodiment, the marbling composition comprises the following components:

[0048] a) 50-60 wt.% of water;

[0049] b) 0.5-2.5 wt.% of emulsifying protein derived from plant or animal; c) 0.02-2.0 wt.% of transglutaminase;

[0050] d) 30-40 wt.% of oil derived from plant or animal, wherein the oil comprises at least 90 wt.%, preferably at least 95 wt.%, of a triglyceride mixture;

[0051] e) 1-4 wt.% of one or more amino acids;

[0052] f) 0.10-2.0 wt.% of fibers;

[0053] g) 10-15 wt.% of maltodextrin;

[0054] h) 1.0-5 wt.% of sodium chloride.

[0055] More in particular, this composition may comprise 1.0-2.0 wt.% of emulsifying protein derived from plant or animal and / or it may comprise 0.05-1.0 wt.% of transglutaminase.

[0056] The invention further relates to a method for producing a marbled meat product with a marbling composition as described hereabove. A key step herein is the (post-mortem) injection of the marbling composition into the meat at one or more locations where a marbling is desired. Such injection occurs by means of a hollow injection device, typically a needle. Such needle usually has side ejectors for lateral release of needle content (c.q. a marbling composition) from the needle, which are for example present as a plurality of holes along the needle, for example disposed at intervals in a range of 2-5 mm. The injection into a meat product usually involves a simultaneous injection via a plurality of needles.An injection in a meat product in principle entails three actions. These concern 1) introducing the needle into the meat; 2) releasing the marbling composition through the needle in the meat; and 3) withdrawing the needle from the meat. These actions may occur sequentially but the release of the marbling composition may also occur at least partly simultaneously with one or both of the two other actions. For example, during the introduction of the needle, the marbling composition may already be released so that it becomes deposed at a particular trajectory in the meat rather than at a specific location. Also during withdrawal of the needle, such release may occur. In both instances, an opening in the needle that allows passage of the marbling composition moves through the meat during disposal of the marbling composition, which may create a particular desired effect.

[0057] The actual release of the marbling composition through the needle in the meat occurs with a pressure that is usually in a range of 0.5-5 bar, in particular in a range of 1-4 bar. Properties of the marbling can be controlled with the applied pressure and the injected amount of marbling composition, such as the thickness of the marbling.

[0058] A marbling composition that is to be injected into a meat product is preferably freshly prepared before injecting it into the meat product. This is because the composition is prone to premature setting when stored, which would disturb the pumping and injection of the composition.

[0059] The amount of marbling composition that is injected into the meat varies with the objective of how much marbling is desired in the meat. Usually, however, the amount of marbling composition that is injected per 100 g of the meat product is in a range of 1.0-100 g, in particular in a range of 5.0-75 g, more in particular in a range of 10-45 g and even more in particular in a range of 16-36 g. The amount is for example 90 g or less, 80 g or less, 70 g or less, 60 g or less, 50 g or less, 40 g or less, 35 g or less, 28 g or less, 24 g or less, 20 g or less, 16 g or less, 12 g or less, 9 g or less or 6 g or less. The amount may also be 2.0 g or more, 4.0 g or more, 7.0 g or more, 10 g or more, 15 g or more, 20 g or more, 25 g or more, 30 g or more, 40 g or more, 50 g or more, 60 g or more or 70 g or more.

[0060] The meat product in a process of the invention may be derived from an animal selected from the group of poultry such as chicken, turkey, duck, goose and pheasant; bovine animals such as cattle (e.g. cow, bull), buffalo, bison, yakand antelope; pig; sheep such as lamb and mutton; goat; deer such as elk and moose; horse; camel such as dromedary, bactrian camel and alpaca; kangaroo; and fish.

[0061] In a process of the invention, the type of emulsifying protein that is present in the marbling composition and the type of meat product in which the marbling composition is injected may be adjusted to one another. This means that it may be preferred to apply a particular combination of meat and emulsifying protein in terms of the animal from which the emulsifying protein and the meat product, respectively, are derived. For example, it may be preferred to use an emulsifying protein and a meat product that are derived from the same animal genus (such as poultry or bovine animals) or from the same animal species (a particular animal such as chicken or cow). For example, a marbling composition comprising beef protein may be injected in beef, or a marbling composition comprising chicken protein may be injected in chicken meat.

[0062] Usually, the injection of the marbling composition is performed with a chilled marbling composition and a chilled meat product, i.e. both are then at a temperature below room temperature, typically lower than 20 °C. It is in principle however also possible that the injection is performed when one or both are at room temperature, but this is not preferred for reasons of energy-efficiency and a risk on microbial contamination.

[0063] For example, at the time of injecting the marbling composition, both the marbling composition and the meat product may be at a temperature in a range of 0-25 °C, in particular in a range of 2-20 °C. It may also be in a range of 0-15 °C or in a range of 5-15 °C.

[0064] Directly after the injection, the marbling composition is nevertheless in place, but it is not yet set (e.g. it is not yet solidified to the desired extent). The setting of the marbling composition takes some time because the transglutaminase-catalyzed reaction usually takes a couple of hours to become complete. Therefore, after the injection, the meat product is left to rest a couple of hours to allow the transglutaminase-catalyzed reaction to proceed. For example, the method is followed by incubating the meat product at a temperature in a range of 0-25 °C during a period of 1-24 hours, in particular at a temperature in a rangeof 0-20 °C or in a range of 5-15 °C during a period of 1-24 hours. The incubation may also be performed during a period in a range of 4-12 hours.

[0065] Whereas the process of marbling, in particular the injection, is performed at a temperature at which the marbling composition is in a liquid state, which is typically above 0 °C, the resulting marbled meat product may well be stored at lower temperatures. This is typically performed with the aim of increasing the shelf-life of the meat. Therefore, the method may be followed by reducing the temperature of the meat to a temperature lower than 0 °C, in particular to a temperature in a range of -5 °C to -40 °C or to a temperature in a range of -15 °C to -35 °C. When storage at such temperatures is foreseen, a cryoprotectant is preferably added to the marbling composition, so that the formation of ice crystals is reduced upon freezing the marbled meat product.

[0066] Surprisingly, this does not affect the quality of the marbling after the meat has been thawed out. In fact, the marbling and its perception thereof upon tasting the marbled meat product was found to be unaffected by the freezing and thawing cycle.

[0067] The invention also relates to a marbled meat product obtainable by a method as described hereabove. In such meat product, the marbling usually constitutes 2-50 wt.% of the entire marbled meat product, in particular 8-40 wt.%, more in particular 14-30 wt.%. For example, it constitutes at least 5 wt.%, at least 10 wt.%, at least 15 wt.%, at least 20 wt.%, at least 25 wt.%, at least 30 wt.%, at least 35 wt.%, or at least 40 wt.%. It may also constitute 40 wt.% or less, 35 wt.% or less, 30 wt.% or less, 26 wt.% or less, 22 wt.% or less, 19 wt.% or less, 16 wt.% or less, 13 wt.% or less or 10 wt.% or less.

[0068] A marbling composition of the invention may be applied at a lower temperature than that at which conventional marbling compositions are applied. Marbling with conventional marbling compositions relies on a liquid to solid phase transition that is effected by a decrease of the temperature to which the marbling composition is subjected during and after its application. Injecting the marbling composition at a temperature at which the resulting marbled meat is ultimately being stored is therefore not possible with conventional marbling compositions. A method of the invention, however, is not bound to this restriction. As the solidification relies on a different principle than simply congealing, the marblingcomposition may well be applied at very low temperatures, for example down to 0 °C. This has the advantage that no energy is lost by first warming or heating the marbling composition and then accommodating for this warmth / heat after the injection by providing additional cooling to the marbled meat product.

[0069] A second advantage is that there is less chance on an undesired microbial contamination in the marbling composition and ultimately also in the marbled meat product and / or less chance on a growth of micro-organisms to an undesired extent in the marbling composition and / or in the marbled meat product.

[0070] Yet another advantage is that the oils used in the present invention are widely available with a constant quality, which contrasts with the fats that are used for conventional meat marbling because these are more scarce and not constantly available with the same specifications.

[0071] Further, the existence of a marbling composition of the invention as an emulsion allows the addition of functional components that are water-soluble as well as the addition of functional components that are oil-soluble. This is an advantage over conventional marbling compositions which do not contain water and which therefore cannot accommodate water-soluble components in a dissolved form. Adding these components in a non-dissolved form to a conventional marbling composition is undesired because the mixing needs to be performed in the molten fat at an elevated temperature (which is inconvenient); and / or because this provides unpleasant inhomogeneities in the final marbling. Thus, a marbling composition of the invention gives more freedom with respect to the additives and ingredients that can be used in the marbling composition and therefore also with respect to the range of applications of the marbling composition.

[0072] The present invention also brings advantages to the produced marbled meat product itself. For example, the marbling and the perception thereof upon eating the marbled meat product (taste and mouth feeling) was found appealing by consumers. It is also favorable that the cooking of a marbled meat product of the invention does not cause a liquefaction of the marbling, so that the taste and mouth feeling do not deteriorate and the meat product does not release the (liquefied) marbling. Neither was the leakage of fat observed during cooking of a marbled meat product of the invention.EXAMPLE

[0073] Preparation of a marbled meat product according to the invention

[0074] A marbling composition with the following composition was prepared according to the invention:

[0075] 1 ) water (25.95 kg 151.9 wt.%)

[0076] 2) animal protein (0.20 kg / 0.4 wt.%)

[0077] 3) transglutaminase (0.15 kg / 0.3 wt.%)

[0078] 4) amino acids (1.90 kg / 3.8 wt.%)

[0079] 5) vegetable fibers (0.30 kg 10.6 wt.%)

[0080] 6) maltodextrin (6.0 kg / 12.0 wt.%)

[0081] 7) salt (0.50 kg / 1.0 wt.%)

[0082] 8) high oleic sunflower oil (15.00 kg / 30.0 wt.%)

[0083] The components were mixed at chilled conditions in a 50 L brine tank by using a handblender, yielding 50 kg of the marbling composition. An injection machine having a block with 3 mm side port injection needles and a conveyor belt was charged with the marbling composition. A piece of meat, entrecote, obtained from the back of a cow (1.811 g) was subsequently injected with the marbling composition (449 g) at a belt speed of 20 strokes per minute. The injection was performed by the block of injection needles, totaling 96 needles. The injections were performed at a pressure of 2.5 bar. Figure 1 shows the meat product before it was subjected to the artificial marbling and Figure 2 shows the same meat product but then after the above marbling procedure was performed on it. The introduced marbling ( / .e. the artificial marbling) constitutes 19.9 wt.% of the final meat product.

Claims

CLAIMS1. Marbling composition for producing a marbled meat product, comprising the following componentsa) 40-70 wt.% of water;b) 0.05-5.0 wt.% of emulsifying protein derived from plant or animal; c) 0.01-5.0 wt.% of transglutaminase;d) 20-40 wt.% of an oil derived from plant or animal.

2. Marbling composition according to claim 1 , wherein the emulsifying protein is capable of acting as a substrate for the transglutaminase enzyme.

3. Marbling composition according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the marbling composition further comprises 0.5-8 wt.% of one or more amino acids, in particular 2-4 wt.% of one or more amino acids.

4. Marbling composition according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the marbling composition further comprises 0.05-5 wt.% of fibers, in particular 0.10-2.0 wt.% of fibers.

5. Marbling composition according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the marbling composition further comprises 1-20 wt.% of a cryoprotectant such as maltodextrin, in particular 10-15 wt.%.

6. Marbling composition according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein the oil is an oil comprising one or more triglycerides in an amount of at least 90 wt.%, in particular an oil selected from the group of sun flower oil, olive oil, rapeseed oil, canola oil, safflower oil and soybean oil.

7. Marbling composition according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the water content of the marbling composition is in a range of 30-75 wt.%, in particular in a range of 45-65 wt.%, more in particular in a range of 50-60 wt.%.

8. Marbling composition according to claim 1 , the marbling composition comprisinga) 50-60 wt.% of water;b) 0.5-2.5 wt.% of emulsifying protein derived from plant or animal; c) 0.02-2.0 wt.% of transglutaminase;d) 30-40 wt.% of oil derived from plant or animal;e) 1-4 wt.% of one or more amino acids;f) 0.10-2.0 wt.% of fibers;g) 10-15 wt.% of maltodextrin;h) 1.0-5 wt.% of sodium chloride.

9. Method for producing a marbled meat product, comprising- providing a meat product;- providing a marbling composition according to any one of claims 1-8; - injecting the marbling composition into the meat product.

10. Method according to claim 9, wherein, at the time of injecting the marbling composition, both the marbling composition and the meat product are at a temperature in a range of 0-25 °C, in particular in a range of 5-15 °C.

11. Method according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the method is followed by incubating the meat product at a temperature in a range of 0-25 °C during a period of 1-24 hours, in particular during a period of 4-12 hours.

12. Method according to any one of claims 9-11 , wherein the method is followed by bringing the meat product at a temperature lower than 0 °C, in particular at a temperature in a range of -15 °C to -35 °C.

13. Method according to any one of claims 9-12, wherein the amount of marbling composition that is injected per 100 g of the meat product is in a range of 5.0- 90 g, in particular in a range of 12-70 g, more in particular in a range of 10-45 g-14. A marbled meat product obtainable by a method according to any one of claims 9-13.

15. A marbled meat product according to claim 14, wherein the marbling constitutes 10-30 wt.% of the marbled meat product, in particular 15-25 wt.% of the marbled meat product.

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