Grilled sausages in the test: Öko-Test examines pork - many animals suffer before they die
Created: 08/18/2022, 05:10
By: Stella Henrich
Öko-Test tested 19 grilled pork sausages.
These include nine organic products.
The consumer advocates examined the meat for ingredients, taste and animal welfare criteria.
Two main results:
Majority of sausages contaminated with mineral oil components;
Keeping conditions of the animals are often not species-appropriate and miserable.
The sobering result:
only two grilled sausages scored “very good”.
Another point of criticism:
phosphates and too much salt are used.
Munich - No, we don't want anyone's appetite for grilled sausages to be spoiled here.
After all, the sausage test involves seven Thuringian grilled sausages from well-known sausage manufacturers, own brands from supermarkets and discounters and goods from organic markets.
And one thing is also clear: not everyone thinks about how the animals are kept in the stables when buying from a retailer.
The price is usually decisive for the consumer when reaching for the shelf.
Grilled pork sausages in the Öko-Test.
Only two score “very good”.
© Ulrich Roth/imago
Nevertheless, the consumer advocates from Öko-Test are now warning people to exercise restraint when eating sausages.
They criticize the quality of the X-rayed goods and the horrible animal husbandry that the pigs have endured from the fattening barn to the finished grilled sausage.
Fact instead of animal welfare:
Cut off curly tails;
animals crammed together that only leave their stables on the way to the slaughterhouse;
pigs standing on slatted floors breathing in the ammonia fumes of their excrement;
GM soy in the feeding trough and antibiotics widely used.
The list of shortcomings is long.
Everything complies with the law, everything is standard, criticizes Öko-Test.
Caution with grilled sausages: Twelve sausage products contaminated with MOSH
But it's not just the husbandry conditions that upset the eco-testers.
Twelve grilled sausages contain mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOSH/MOSH analogues), which you belch vigorously.
In the organic product from the Packlhof butcher's shop, even in a quantity that the testers classify as "greatly increased".
What MOSH means for human health is still completely unclear.
They have no place in food
Consumer advocates from Öko-Test
A possible source of the mineral oil components are lubricants on machines used in sausage production.
However, they can also get into the grilled sausages via sausage casings, spices or herbs.
These MOSH can accumulate in the body and "what this means for human health is still completely unclear," warns Öko-Test in its July issue of the meat product.
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Be careful with grilled sausages: phosphates and too much salt are harmful
There shouldn't be any phosphates in the sausage either.
This additive is forbidden in organic foods because they are not ideal for people with kidney problems.
According to the Öko-Test, all grilled sausages contain the exception of the organic sausages and the Meica Bratmaxe 5 pieces
phosphates.
As stabilizers, they make the sausage meat smoother.
However, added phosphates could increase the phosphate level in the blood, which is problematic for people "whose kidney function is impaired," emphasize the consumer advocates.
In addition, from the point of view of Öko-Test, there is too much salt in six sausages.
With one of these sausages, you sometimes already have a third of the maximum amount of salt recommended per day by the German Society for Nutrition.
Caution with grilled sausages:
At the end of the test, only two grilled sausages scored “very good”.
The organic sausages from
Alnatura Rostbratwurst from Bioland
and the
Bio Original Thuringian Rostbratwurst
from Edeka.
"They do not contain any questionable ingredients, the providers are transparent and strive for better housing conditions," was the result.
According to consumer advocates, this means: "The pigs processed for this have largely lived in a species-appropriate manner."
Test loser:
The "BBQ bratwurst hearty 10 pieces" from Aldi Nord/Aldi Süd is the test loser and receives the grade "poor".
In addition to too much salt and phosphorus, they were also found to have increased mineral oil components.
How the individual grilled sausages were rated can be read in detail in the July issue of Öko-Test.
The Stiftung Warentest has also examined packaged grilled pork sausages from supermarkets and discounters.
When evaluating the sausages, the consumer advocates paid particular attention to the origin and composition of the meat quality.
Nuremberg and Thuringia in particular were convincing in the evaluation.
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