| Summary: | The effect of a prior chilling period and an alga extract packaging on the quality of a canned underutilised mackerel species (<i>Scomber colias</i>) was investigated. For this different chilling times (0, 4 and 9 days) were taken into account and three concentrations of aqueous extracts of the macroalga <i>Fucus spiralis</i> were tested in a brine-packaging medium. Chemical changes related to quality were analysed after 3 months of canned storage. A substantial increase (<i>p</i> < 0.05) in free fatty acid content was observed in canned fish by increasing the chilling time; however, alga extract presence in the packaging medium led to decreased mean values. Concerning lipid oxidation development, an increased chilling time led to higher values (<i>p</i> < 0.05) of thiobarbituric acid index and fluorescent compounds formation; remarkably, an increased presence of alga extract led to a higher (<i>p</i> < 0.05) peroxide retention and lower (<i>p</i> < 0.05) fluorescent compounds content. Average colour <i>L</i>* and <i>a</i>* values showed a decrease and an increase, respectively, with chilling time; however, such changes were minimised with the alga extract content in the packaging system. Trimethylamine content revealed a marked increase as a result of the sterilisation step, but no influence (<i>p</i> > 0.05) of the chilling time or the alga-packaging medium could be implied.
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