Brazilian dry-aged beef consumption has increased between 2013 and 2018. Many restaurants and artisan butcher shops are developing and producing dry-aged beef. There is, however, no official standard regarding aging conditions such as temperature, relative humidity or time. Knowing the effects of different aging conditions on meat quality (sensory and microbiological), specifically for the kind of beef produced in Brazil, will help the meat industry, restaurants and butcher shops produce a better and more consistent product.
One of the main changes that occurs during the dry-aging process is moisture loss by evaporation. This leads to a dehydrated surface with low water activity that protects the meat from spoilage microorganisms. On the other hand, the moisture loss and crust formation increases the weight and trimming losses, reducing the saleable meat. To address the yield losses, scientists developed a special moisture-permeable plastic bag application for dry aging. This plastic bag application reduces the evaporative weight losses, thus increasing saleable meat yield.