Abstract:To prolong the shelf life of chilled pork, spray preservatives were prepared using different ratios of film-forming materials as the base film solution, with the antibacterial Pup2-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) peptide complex employed as the bacteriostatic agent. The optimal formulation was selected, and chilled meat treated via spraying. Changes in the quality parameters of chilled meat during storage, including pH, TVB-N, color, texture, and total plate count, were measured to investigate the effect that the Pup2-EGCG complex spray preservative has on the preservation of chilled meat. Results indicated that the optimal formulation for the Pup2-EGCG complex spray preservative was a whey protein-to-chitosan (V/V) ratio of 1:6, with the Pup2-EGCG complex added at 1MIC (0.375 mg•mL-1 antibacterial peptide +0.01 mg•mL-1 EGCG). Under these conditions, the spray preservative exhibited a small particle size (13 μm), uniform film formation, and an excellent atomization effect. The preservative demonstrated strong antibacterial activity, with inhibition rates against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus of 96.62% and 91.56%, respectively. In addition, it effectively slowed the increase in pH and TVB-N values, mitigated changes in color and texture, and effectively inhibited the growth of microorganisms, thus extending the shelf life of chilled meat from six days to at least 12 days. The antimicrobial Pup2-EGCG peptide complex spray preservative prepared in this study demonstrated an excellent preservation effect on chilled meat, which further expands the application of antimicrobial peptides in food preservation.