In this country, food and its production are strictly controlled. Nevertheless, Stiftung Warentest, Öko-Test or consumer organizations such as Foodwatch repeatedly discover dangerous ingredients in the products examined during their tests.
Warnings about listeria in sausages and fish, salmonella in eggs, pesticides in spices: we have long since become accustomed to food recalls from retailers or manufacturers or the responsible authorities. Hardly a day goes by without appropriate information from the public, as expressly required by the legislator in Section 40 of the Food and Feed Code (LFGB). become like this For example, the public recalls from the federal and state governments are published on the Lebensmittelwarnung.de portal.
Such recalls are often related to incidents in the course of the production process – for example, when foreign objects such as plastic particles accidentally get into the products during manufacture or when cold chains are not maintained. This usually affects individual batches, which are then withdrawn from the market accordingly and for which the consumer is warned.
Foodwatch warns of mineral oil in food
The situation is different with more “systematic” contamination. Apparently, many foods are contaminated with dangerous mineral oil residues, as the consumer organization Foodwatch determined in a Europe-wide laboratory test. According to foodwatch, a total of 152 foods from various European countries were examined – every eighth product was contaminated with so-called aromatic mineral oils (MOAH), which are suspected of being carcinogenic and mutagenic. Foodwatch therefore demands “the products must be recalled immediately and an EU-wide limit value for mineral oil contamination introduced!”
But not only the organization Foodwatch examines and warns of questionable foods. Stiftung Warentest and Öko-Test regularly test food on their taste and their ingredients. The following examples show what consumer advocates discover in terms of dangerous substances, which are mostly harmful to health:
Worms in smoked salmon
Öko-Test tested a total of 20 smoked salmon in the current issue (12/2021). In addition to 15 salmon from aquaculture, five smoked wild salmon were also among the test products. In addition to the ingredients, the laboratory also checked the germ load on the specified use-by date. Sensory experts tested the salmon for appearance, smell and taste.
The good news: none Smoked salmon turned out to be really bad in the test. There were no problems with salmonella, heavy metals such as mercury or antibiotic residues in any of the tested products. Not harmful, but disgusting: The experts found many nematodes in three smoked salmon. These are small, dead worms that cannot be seen with the naked eye.
mineral oil in chocolate
Some time ago, Öko-Test examined 25 whole milk chocolates in more detail. In addition to cheap discounter and supermarket products, their laboratory also examined well-known brands such as Lindt, Milka and Ritter Sport as well as six organic products (Edition 12/2019). In addition to ingredients, taste and appearance, the chocolates were also evaluated in terms of transparency and cocoa production.
The bittersweet result shows: No chocolate scored “very good” in the test, only two secured the rating “good”, including one organic product. At least six milk chocolates failed with the rating “poor”, one product even had to pick up a “poor”. Similar to the current Foodwatch study, some well-known brands in the Öko-Test laboratory showed a very high level of mineral oil components.
Emollients in olive oil
Fruity taste, bitter moments and spicy notes: It is the interplay that makes good olive oil so special. Exactly this harmony is required when the examiners of the Stiftung Warentest make “extra virgin olive oil” and let it melt in your mouth. But you shouldn’t leave every oil on your food, according to the testers’ results. A total of 27 products were recently examined, two of which only scored “poor”.
One product failed because it contained a very high level of DEHP. The high value indicates that the plasticizer could have come loose from unsuitable hoses. DEHP can impair fertility and is avoidable at altitude. This also applies to four oils that were heavily contaminated with Moah and/or Mosh mineral oil hydrocarbons.
Mold poison in tomato paste
In a recent test, the consumer portal Öko-Test examined 20 tomato paste products. These include products from well-known discounters such as Aldi or Netto and organic products from dm and Alnatura. The result is relatively shocking: almost every second tomato paste in the test was contaminated with mold toxins (alternaria toxins) – including organic products. What’s more: in addition to mold toxins, the testers from Öko-Test also discovered pesticides.
Benzene and radium in mineral water
Stiftung Warentest tested 32 types of still mineral water. Particular attention was paid to the ingredients of the types of water during the test: If they contain substances that break down pesticides, nitrates, sweeteners or uranium, points are deducted in the overall ranking. The good news for consumers: 26 of the types of water tested scored “very good” or “good” – the products are completely unpolluted. However, the testers found questionable ingredients in some products.
For example, the testers not only discovered excessive amounts of radium 226 and 228, the laboratory was also able to detect pesticide degradation products and benzene.
Insecticides in herbal tea
ÖKO-Test examined 50 herbal tea mixtures in more detail. The frightening result: in some types of tea, questionable plant toxins are found in increased concentrations – the testers also found what they were looking for in organic tea: Depending on the product, an increased level of the plant toxin PA was found in some of the products, in addition to the banned insecticide chlorpyrifos. As a result, five organic products received the rating “insufficient”.
Glyphosate in mustard
Öko-Test examined 20 mustard brands. The results of the ÖKO-TEST mustard test should please every mustard fan: no mustard is really bad. However, the laboratory found traces of the weed killer glyphosate – and that was in ten out of 20 products. The brands affected include Aldi Süd, Thomy, Kühne, Händlmaier and Rewe.
The affected mustards only contained traces of the questionable herbicide glyphosate. However, Öko-Test believes that this remedy should not occur at all. In addition, the ÖKO-TEST laboratory detected the substance bisphenol F in all types of mustard. This could affect the hormone system, but this has not yet been sufficiently researched. That is why there have not been any legal limit values so far.