Enzymes for pet food digest production

Pet Food Digest is meat that has been broken down to be used for pet food flavoring. A model system for the production of digest includes finely grinding the meat product or other protein. Water may be needed depending on whether the meat product is frozen and needs to be thawed or if it is fresh. Add the enzyme of choice at a rate of 0.1% to 0.25% based on the total weight of the meat. Addition of the enzyme may be done at the start of the cook cycle or when the slurry reaches the desired temperature. The enzyme is deactivated by raising the temperature of the slurry to the enzymes deactivation temperature and holding for 10 minutes. Papain is arguably the most popular enzyme for digest production, however other enzymes may be more effective for certain types of byproducts or may give a different palatability result.

Papain is a broad spectrum protease that is active over a large pH and temperature range. Papain is active on a variety of substrates such as liver, lung, or other viscera. It is a very heat stable protease and can easily tolerate reaction temperatures in the range of 140-160 degrees F. Papain can be inactivated by holding at 185 – 190 degrees F for 10 minutes. These conditions may vary depending on other processing parameters.