departamentos de productos

Department of Meat and Fish Products (DPCP)

The Department of Meat and Fish Products (DPCP) is part of the research line of the ICTAN’s strategic plan: Innovation in Food, Technological Processes and Sustainability; Functional Ingredients and Foods and Food Quality and Safety. In the DPCP is carried out oriented and basic research and technological studies, both of pre-competitive character as requested by Industry.

The activity of the Department stated in the following research lines:

  • Improvement of the quality and safety of meat and fishery products through application of traditional, innovative and sustainable technologies in food processing and preservation.
  • Development of potentially functional meat and fish products and their nutritional, sensory and techno-functional characterization.
  • Study of the implications of chemical changes, physical and structural properties in meat and fish products.
  • Preparation of fat analogous in meat products.
  • Valorisation of meat products.
  • Recovery of seafood by-products and by-catch.
  • Development of methods to avoid melanosis in crustaceans.
  • Obtainment of collagen and gelatin from seafood products.
  • Design and characterization of biodegradable, edible and/or active films.
  • Obtaining of bioactive peptides from fish discards.
  • Bioaccessibility and biological activity of foods, ingredients and bioactive compounds
  • Study on Anisakis: technological and culinary treatments to eliminate or reduce infestation and allergenicity in fish parasitized by Anisakis spp.
  • Development of spectroscopic methods (FTIR, FT Raman, and LF NMR) for the evaluation of the thermal history of seafood products with the aim of applying them in quality management and authentication of processing conditions.
  • Modeling and optimization of processes in the production of meat and fish products.

Research Group on Meat and Meat Products (CARPROCAR)

  • Dr. José Carballo Santaolalla
  • Dr. Susana Cofrades Barbero

Research Group on Development, Valorisation and Innovation of Fish Products (INNOVAPESCA)

  • Dr. Pilar Montero García
  • Dr. Carmen Gómez Guillén
  • Dr. Marta María Calvo Rodríguez
  • Dr. Elvira López Caballero
  • Dr. Alién Alemán Pérez
  • Dr. Oscar Martínez Álvarez
  • Dr. Joaquín Gómez Estaca

Research Group on Quality and Safety of Fishery and Aquaculture products (QUALIFISH)

  • Dr. Mercedes Careche Recacoechea

Research Group on Innovation in the Development, Characterization and Storage of Meat Products (INDMEAT)

  • Dr Claudia Ruiz-Capillas Pérez
  • Dr. Ana María Herrero Herranz

Research Group on Digital technologies, sensory analysis, meat and derivatives (DIGISEN)

  • Dr. Gonzalo Delgado Pando
  • Ignacio Jesús Escudero Abad
  • Mª Carmen Herrero de Frutos
  • Carlota Pérez Gómez-Caro
  • Jaime Gonzalez Guerrero
  • Alisson Chirica
  • Pauline Pennaneach
  • Jinxin Zhang
  • Arancha Saiz
  • Ziwei Xu
  • Marina Usieto Albero
  • Aiyan Guan Guan
  • Carlota Perosanz Amarillo
  • Agostinha Furtado
  • Ignacio Boto
  • Alba Martin Ginel
  • Camila Cristina Avelar de Sousa
  • Pablo Martín Brieva

The Department has scientific-technological capabilities to solve a wide range of sectorial issues and it also has the know-how in developing new products and the application of technological processes of interest to the Industry. The researchers have a well-built background and include microbiologists, chemists, veterinarians, biologists and engineers among its members. These skills are developed within the framework of research projects with national and international funds, and in active collaboration with research groups, leading to numerous publications in SCI journals with high impact. The Department also undertakes transfer of technology; in this sense, it develops numerous projects with several sectors of the industry to perform technological support work, leading to various patents, most of them licensed. In addition, the Department has a significant training capacity both of research and technical personnel, by the means of Doctoral Thesis, TFG, TFM and receiving national and international students in different programs: MFA, U. País Vasco, Escuela de la Vid, Escuela Javeriana, ALCYTA, etc. Most of the members of the Department also participate in courses, conferences and postgraduate university programs.

The Department collaborates with different scientific platforms:  Interdisciplinary Thematic Platforms (PTIs), Center of scientific-technological competence in processed meat products (CECOP-PTC), CONSOLIDER, etc. as well as the dissemination of the Science: attendance and presentation of papers at congress, dissemination of results -both specific and of general interest- in different sectors, participation in fairs and conferences (Semana de la Ciencia, etc.).

It should be noted further the internationalization of the Department through participation in international projects:  : NextGenerationEU (PRTR), EIT FOOD, COST actions, staff stays in international Centres, reception of foreign personnel, collaboration with foreign agencies to evaluate projects, participation in international conferences (WEFTA, TAFT, ICoMST , etc.), meetings of FAO and other organizations to protect interests of the Third World, and other specific multidisciplinary issues, etc.

The department has received recognition from various scientific-technical awards for its activity: WEFTA 2019 Award, “José Flores” Award for Innovation in the V Edition of the Awards of the National Association of Meat Industries of Spain (ANICE), the 2nd accesit in the XIV NAOS Strategy Awards (AECOSAN) in the “Business Initiative” category, among others.

Finally, in base of the above mentioned, the Department has an important analytical skills: microbiological, physical-chemical, technological, etc., some of which have led to patents being licensed.

Head of the Department

Dr. Joaquín Gómez Estaca

jgomez@ictan.csic.es