| Summary: | This study aims to improve knowledge on donkey meat and the vacuum aging effect on the Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), oxidative profile and status and the sensory characteristics. Ten 18-month old Martina Franca donkeys’ male foals were involved in the trial. <i>Longissimus thoracis</i> (LT) muscle was extracted from each left half carcass, between the fourth and the ninth rib. Each muscle was divided into five sections, vacuum packaged, stored at 2 °C, and randomly assigned to one of the different aging time (1, 3, 6, 9, and 14 days of aging). Volatile compounds, oxidation parameters, and antioxidant enzymes were analysed, and a sensory test was performed. A nested one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed for aging time as an independent variable. Significance was set at <i>p</i> < 0.05. Aldehydes are the most produced VOCs, but no changes were observed during vacuum aging (<i>p</i> > 0.05). Nitrogen compounds increased during aging (<i>p</i> < 0.01). TBARs and hydroperoxides did not change during the storage, whereas the protein carbonyls increased (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Vacuum aging slowed down lipid oxidation and put in evidence the presence of protein oxidation and degradation, influencing the VOCs productions and sensory evaluation.
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