Meat Extract
Meat extract is the concentrated water-soluble fraction of meat, produced by cooking beef, pork or chicken raw material in water and evaporating the resulting stock to a paste or powder. It is one of the oldest industrial savoury ingredients and remains the flavour base against which yeast extracts and hydrolysed vegetable proteins are benchmarked.
Its flavour is not carried by protein, since most of the protein coagulates during cooking and is removed with the solids. What concentrates instead is the sarcoplasmic soluble fraction: free amino acids led by glutamic acid, the nucleotide inosine monophosphate released as adenosine triphosphate degrades post mortem, creatine and creatinine, dipeptides such as carnosine and anserine, organic acids and mineral salts. Glutamate and inosine monophosphate reinforce each other, which is why meat extract gives a savoury intensity out of proportion to its glutamate content alone.
Paste grades are viscous dark brown material at 70 to 80 percent solids; powder grades are hygroscopic light to dark brown solids that dissolve readily in hot water. The material is heat stable through retorting and extrusion, and it browns further on heating because it carries both amino acids and reducing sugars.
We source bulk Meat Extract from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturers are in Guangdong and Tianjin. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
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- Function
- Plant extract
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Dark brown viscous paste or free-flowing brown powder |
| Flavour | Clean savoury meat profile, free from rancid or burnt notes |
| Total nitrogen (dry basis) | 12.0 percent minimum |
| Amino nitrogen | 3.5 percent minimum |
| Creatinine | 6.0 percent minimum on dry basis |
| Total solids (paste grade) | 75.0 percent minimum |
| Sodium chloride | 10.0 percent maximum |
| Fat | 1.0 percent maximum |
| Total ash | 22.0 percent maximum |
| Species identity | Conforms to declared species by DNA testing |
| Lead | 1.0 mg/kg maximum |
| Arsenic | 1.0 mg/kg maximum |
| Total plate count | 10000 cfu/g maximum |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
The primary division is by species and raw material, with beef extract the reference article and pork and chicken extracts traded alongside. Within each species the trade distinguishes extract made from lean meat and from cooking liquor recovered on a processing line; the liquor grade is cheaper and generally higher in ash. Physical grades are paste at 70 to 80 percent solids, the traditional format, and spray-dried powder, usually carrying maltodextrin or salt as a drying aid.
Beyond form, buyers specify total nitrogen and amino nitrogen, which together indicate flavour strength, creatinine content, which is the classic marker distinguishing genuine meat extract from a hydrolysed vegetable protein sold in its place, and sodium chloride. Enzymatically hydrolysed grades have a higher degree of hydrolysis and a stronger but flatter savoury note, and reaction-flavoured grades have been taken through a Maillard step with sugar and sometimes cysteine to build roasted and grilled character. Halal and kosher certified lots are produced, and species declaration is a routine part of the specification for both religious and authenticity reasons.
Applications
- Bouillon cubes, stock powders and soup bases as the savoury foundation
- Instant noodle seasoning sachets
- Gravies, sauces and demi-glace preparations
- Canned and retort soups and ready meals, where the extract survives sterilisation
- Processed meat products, restoring flavour lost during curing and cooking
- Snack seasonings applied as a dry topical blend
- Reaction flavour manufacture as the amino acid and nucleotide source for a Maillard step
- Pet food palatants and coatings
- Umami enhancement in reduced-sodium formulations, where nucleotides allow salt to be cut
- Microbiological culture media, a long-standing non-food outlet
Brands Using Meat Extract
Widely-distributed consumer products that list Meat Extract on the ingredient label.
- KnorrRich Beef Stock Cubes ↗Beef extract is declared at 2.3 percent in the cube's ingredient list, after salt, vegetable fats, starch and yeast extract.Label verified 2026-08-31
- KnorrBovril Liquid Beef Bouillon ↗The bouillon's ingredient list names beef extract alongside hydrolysed soy protein, yeast extract and caramel.Label verified 2026-08-31
Brand names, product names and logos are the property of their owners. They appear here as published evidence that the ingredient is used, taken from the brand's own label or website. Their appearance is not an endorsement, and it does not mean the brand buys from us or from any manufacturer listed on this site.
China Manufacturers of Meat Extract
Top Meat Extract manufacturers in China.
Guangdong ADD Flavor & Fragrance Co., Ltd.2 ingredients in the directory- Toanjin Tangchao Foods Industry Co., Ltd.1 ingredient in the directory
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
In the United States meat extract is a food ingredient made from meat and its manufacture falls under the jurisdiction of the Food Safety and Inspection Service rather than the FDA, which means the plant operates under federal meat inspection with a hazard analysis and critical control point plan, and the product must be made from animals slaughtered and inspected under that system. There is no food additive regulation for meat extract, since it is a food rather than an additive, and where it functions as a flavouring it does so within the general flavouring provisions. Species and source labelling requirements follow the meat inspection rules.
In the European Union meat extract is a product of animal origin subject to the animal by-products and food hygiene legislation, and the manufacturing establishment must be approved for that activity. It carries no E number. Bovine raw material must comply with the transmissible spongiform encephalopathy specified risk material rules, which restrict the tissues that may be used. Species authenticity is a documented issue in this trade and DNA testing is commonly specified. Codex has adopted a code of hygienic practice for meat that covers the raw material stream, and the general Codex provisions on contaminants, labelling and hygiene apply.
Manufacturing Process
Raw material arrives chilled or frozen as lean trimmings, cooking liquor from a canning or cooked-meat line, or bones with adhering meat. It is inspected, washed and minced, then cooked in water in a batch kettle or continuous cooker at close to boiling. Cooking coagulates the myofibrillar protein, which is the point of the step: the insoluble protein and fat separate and are removed, while the soluble amino acids, nucleotides, creatine and salts pass into the stock.
The cooked mass is separated by decanter centrifuge and the fat is skimmed and recovered as tallow or lard. The stock is fine filtered, sometimes passed over a plate filter with a filter aid to give the clarity the specification demands, and then concentrated by multi-effect vacuum evaporation, which is preferred over open-pan boiling because it limits scorching and colour development. Where a stronger or more roasted product is wanted the concentrate is taken through a controlled Maillard reaction with reducing sugar, sometimes with added cysteine or thiamine for meaty top notes. The concentrate is standardised on solids, nitrogen and salt, then either filled hot as paste into drums and pails or spray dried with a carrier to a free-flowing powder, sieved and packed in moisture barrier material.
