Transglutaminase as an Effective Protein Binder for Restructured Fishery Products

Abstract

There is always a growing demand for fish and fishery products in the market. Consumption of red meat and meat products are not always good for human health but fish is rich in easily digestible and nutritionally rich first class animal protein which is very important in human health diet. Due to the increasing demand for fresh products in the fishery markets, there is a production of restructured fish products which have the appearance of fresh fish have gained an importance. These are the analog products which can be prepared from underutilized fish species, by-catch fishes, low value fishes and by-product wastes from processing industries after the filleting process of commercial fishes. The major important thing in producing this analog product is the appearance and the texture of the products. Microbial transglutaminase is an enzyme used to bind the protein in the preparation of restructured fishery products or meat analog products.