STEAK OUT — A comparison of top sirloin steaks when frozen in a large section and then cut after thawed, top, and a steak that was frozen individually as a pre-cut steak, bottom. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo)
By John Lovett
University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture
Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station
Steaks and balloons have something in common — at least when it comes to freezing temperatures, according to Derico Setyabrata.
Setyabrata is an assistant professor of meat science and muscle biology with the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas and the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. Setyabrata’s recent study showed that successful long-term storage of bulk beef purchases comes down to size and cut.
The study, published in Meat and Muscle Biology, the official journal of the American Meat Science Association, takes a deep dive into the science of freezing beef. Researchers compared three cuts of meat, in whole sections and cut into steaks, with freeze-thawing cycles in industrial blast freezers and two types of freezers found in most homes.
“There are some muscle-specific differences, but all in all, what we see is if you store it as a roast or a bigger section, usually the products maintain the quality a little bit better compared to steaks, but overall, not much of a difference,” Setyabrata said.
While large sections, such as a roast, froze more slowly and resulted in greater moisture loss compared to individual frozen steaks, the bigger sections of meat offered better color quality compared with the individually frozen steaks.
Ultimately, preserving the quality of the meat comes down to limiting moisture and air in the package, which will lead to ice crystals that destroy meat at the cellular level.
Ice and air
“Imagine your meat product as a balloon, and once you have ice crystals there, the balloon pops and then there’s nothing,” Setyabrata said. “That causes a lot of issues, like excessive moisture loss because those cells are damaged. If you don’t store it correctly … or if it’s stored too long and not in well-packaged conditions, it can also lead to a lot of oxidation issues.”
Oxidation, which is the chemical reaction of oxygen with a substance, can lead to off-flavors and odors, discoloration and decrease the juiciness of the meat.
To limit damaging ice crystal formation in the meat, Setyabrata recommends removing the meat from the package it was brought home in and vacuum sealing it. Setyabrata said resealable plastic freezer bags could also be used for those without a vacuum sealer.
“I think that will definitely improve your meat quality, even if you move it into a ZiplocTM bag and try to remove as much air as possible,” he said. “That already helps improve the potential quality of the products following storage. The freezer is still the best way to preserve your products.”
If it’s done properly, Setyabrata said that beef samples can be stored frozen for up to one year, and sometimes two years without significant impact to quality, if the freezer’s temperature does not fluctuate much. Temperature fluctuations in the freezer caused by being opened regularly or packing product over the freezer capacity will decrease product longevity, however.
“A lot of the time, for us as consumers, we only have one freezer that also has everything else in it, so we open and close it all the time, and that actually causes a lot of issues because of the temperature fluctuations,” Setyabrata said. “With temperature fluctuations, I would still probably say about half a year or so, and the meat will still probably be good.”
If not packaged correctly, Setyabrata said, degradation of meat quality advances from ice crystal formation after being stored for just a month.
“Once you can see that there are ice crystals on it, that shows that there is quality degradation from the moisture, and the ice crystals build up around it,” he said.
Consumer panel results
Grading three cuts of meat — paired strip loin, top sirloin, and eye of round — in large sections and steaks, stored in three kinds of freezers, the results of the study suggested that product size has a greater impact on determining final frozen meat quality than the type of freezer used. The three types of freezers tested in the study included a freezer in a standard home refrigerator, a standard home chest freezer, and an industrial blast freezer.
Based on trained consumer panel responses collected by collaborators at Texas Tech University, individual steak freezing increased the product’s toughness for the beef strip loins and top sirloins, but eye of round samples were not impacted, potentially due to their high connective tissue content, the study noted.
Consumers rated all sensory traits similarly for paired strip loins and eye of round muscles, whereas large sections in a standard home refrigerator’s freezer received a lower tenderness rating in the top sirloin muscle.
Based on the study’s results, product size during freezing will govern frozen meat quality and could potentially cause detrimental effects on consumer acceptability and satisfaction.
Ultimately, the researchers found that typical consumer freezing practices only minimally impacted the final product quality.
The full study, “Impact of Product Size and Subsequent Consumer Freezing Practices on Meat Quality and Palatability of Different Beef Muscles,” was conducted with support from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff, and from the Arkansas Beef Council.
Setyabrata’s co-authors at the University of Arkansas included lead author Paul Olaoluwaniyi Dahunsi, graduate research assistant in the animal science department; Ashley Rivera Pitti, meat lab undergraduate research assistant; Palika Dias-Morse, animal science program associate; and Morgan Denzer, instructor in the food science department.
From Texas Tech, Sebastian Hernandez, postdoctoral research associate, Thomas W. Dobbins, graduate research assistant, and Jerrad F. Legako, associate professor in the department of animal and food sciences, were also co-authors. Kelly Vierck, extension meat specialist and assistant professor at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, also contributed to the study as a co-author.
Catch Setyabrata talking about this research and more in the July 2025 episode of the Food, Farms & Forests podcast.
Mention of trade names does not imply endorsement by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.
To learn more about the Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website. Follow us on X at @ArkAgResearch, subscribe to the Food, Farms and Forests podcast and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on X at @AgInArk. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three system campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
