The surging global demand for meat, driven by its nutritional and sensory appeal, raises significant concerns regarding food safety, environmental impact, and animal welfare. While existing processing techniques and emerging alternatives like cell-cultured meat offer potential solutions, their adoption is hindered by regional and demographic acceptance barriers. Hydrogels offer a promising platform to address the multifaceted challenges of the meat industry, thanks to their biocompatibility, tunable properties, and versatility. However, systematic reviews of their applications are still scarce. This review comprehensively evaluates the diverse roles of hydrogels across key meat sectors: (1) Preservation, encompassing bioactive compound-loaded hydrogels and metal-organic framework (MOF)-based hydrogels for antimicrobial activity, moisture-regulating absorbent pads, and intelligent indicator hydrogels (e.g., pH-responsive, MOF sensors) for real-time quality monitoring; (2) Meat Substitutes, leveraging their high water-binding capacity and tunable rheological properties to mimic meat texture and juiciness; and (3) Cell-Cultured Meat, utilizing their biocompatible three-dimensional network structures as scaffolds to significantly enhance cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation efficiency. Furthermore, the review explores the prospective integration of cutting-edge hydrogel technologies, including artificial intelligence-enhanced hydrogels and DNA hydrogels, for future advancements in smart meat systems and precision biomanufacturing. This systematic analysis highlights hydrogel's transformative potential in enhancing meat safety, sustainability, and innovation. • Hydrogels enable antibacterial via bioactive synergy and MOFs composites. • Intelligent hydrogel indicators monitor meat freshness through pH and MOFs sensors. • Hydrogels mimic fat/cartilage texture and lubricity for healthier meat substitutes.. • Hydrogel enhance cultured meat cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. • AI-driven design and DNA hydrogels offer future paths for innovation in meat science.
Huang et al. (Sun,) studied this question.