What is cold-shortening
It is important to point out that over-effective chilling of hot carcasses can lead to toughness. If the temperature of the meat (muscles) can be reduced to -10 to -15oC, whilst they are still in the early pre-rigor condition (pH about 6.0-6.4), there is a tendency for shortening and thereby, toughness on subsequent cooking. This phenomenon is referred to as "cold-shortening". The tendency of cold shortening is greater when closer the temperature attained by the pre-rigor muscle is close to the freezing temperature.