###### Abstract  
In the present study, the potential of application of near infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy for the estimation of the chemical composition of traditional (village style) sausages was examined. The chemical composition (moisture, ash, protein and, fat content) was determined by standard reference methods. For the development of the calibration model, 39 samples of traditional fresh sausages were used, while for external validation, 10 samples of sausages were used. The correlation coefficients of calibration (RMSEC) and standard errors (SEC) were 0.92 and 1.58 (moisture), 0.77 and 0.18 (ash), 0.87 and 0.89 (protein) and 0.93 and 1.73 (fat). The cross-validation (correlation coefficients (RMSECV) and standard errors (SECV) were 0.86 and 2.13 (moisture), 0.56 and 0.26 (ash), 0.78 and 1.17 (protein), and 0.88 and 2.17 (fat). The results of the calibration model showed that NIR spectroscopy can be applied to estimate with very good precision the fat content of traditional village-style sausages, whereas moisture and protein content can be estimated with good accuracy. The external validation confirmed the ability of NIR spectroscopy to predict the chemical composition of sausages.  
t +
Footnote †: journal: Medical Physics  
Academic Editor [PERSON]  
and fat content should not be higher than 35%. The chemical composition of traditional sausages has been studied in the past [3; 4; 5] and the results showed significant variability even between different production batches from the same butcher shop [6]. However, Regulation 1169/2011 of the European Union [7], on the provision of food information to the consumers, does not apply to traditional sausages because they are produced in small quantities. Consequently, consumers do not have the option to choose products with improved chemical composition and nutritional value during purchase. In addition to that, the chemical composition of meat products also affects products' eating quality [8].  
Near infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy is a valuable, cost-effective, and reliable tool for the estimation of various quality parameters of meat and meat products such as pH(u), color, eating quality characteristics, and chemical composition [9]. With regard to chemical composition, NIR spectroscopy has been used successfully in the industry to determine the content of the principal components (moisture, fat, and protein) in meat products [10]. However, in the vast majority of the studies, NIR spectroscopy has been used for the estimation of the chemical composition of intact or minced muscle, and in only a few studies has NIR spectroscopy has been applied for the estimation of the chemical composition of sausages that were produced in the laboratory following standard procedures commonly applied in the meat industry [11; 12]. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, there are no studies on the applicability of NIR spectroscopy for the prediction of the composition of retail meat products produced in small quantities, such as traditional sausages that are prepared in the premises of butcher shops. Finally, the development of portable handheld NIR spectroscopy devices that will allow the in situ accurate estimations of meat and meat products' chemical composition is considered a research priority [10; 13], and it is attracting attention for application in the production of traditional products [14].  
The purpose of this preliminary study was to develop a calibration model to evaluate the potential of NIR spectroscopy to predict the chemical composition of commercial samples of traditional sausages produced in small quantities in butcher shops.