VIDEO. What is the real amount of fish in Croustibat breaded fish?

In the frozen food section, there is a very, very surprising product: the “Petits trésors” Croustibat display in large letters on the front of their packaging “100% Alaska pollock”.

However, if we return the package to read the list of ingredients ... "Alaska Pollock 51%".

Where is the wolf?

In order to understand how such a product could be sold, we called the consumer service of Findus, the company that produces the Croustibat range: "In the" fish "part of the breaded fish, there is 100% Alaska pollock. , nothing else ”, explains our interlocutor on the phone.

“Then the fish is covered, only around,” she insists, “with the mixture of the remaining ingredients so that the breadcrumbs can adhere to the fish flesh.

"

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Amandine Chaignot, owner of the restaurant Pouliche, in Paris, which was a very young Michelin star, is doubtful: “I would be very surprised if someone told me that there was only fish in there”, confides- her as she just dissected and tasted one of the Croustibat fish-shaped donuts.

We redid the Croustibat recipe

To be clear, he was asked to reproduce the recipe by relying on telephone instructions from the consumer service and the list of ingredients: Alaska pollock, therefore, blended, wheat flour, wheat starch, rice flour, salt, sugar, onion and garlic powder, water, breadcrumbs, rapeseed oil.

With the mention of spices: "I can hardly see myself putting the raz-el-hanout in there, so I squeeze", she comments.

After passing through the pan, the result is… different.

"Clearly, it doesn't taste the same," said the chef.

I think there is something about the fish mixture that is not 100% fish.

"

Findus consumer service is wrong

We tasted the original and the copy ourselves, and it's true: the difference is obvious.

Alerted, the Findus communications manager, who declined our filming request, admitted by email that the brand's consumer service had given incorrect information.

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It's annoying for Findus… but it takes us away from the real subject: is the packaging of the “Petits Trésors” Croustibat (€ 7.49 / kg) false?

"We can be misled into thinking that we will have 100% fish inside, admits Camille Dorioz", campaign manager at the NGO Foodwatch, which regularly pins brands for deception.

“After, he puts it into perspective, it's clear, it's a breaded fish, so there will be breadcrumbs.

What shocks me, however, is that it is a product made up of half fish… and half breadcrumbs.

"

Inflated price?

Same problem for the "100% quality Alaskan Pollock" marketed this time under the Findus brand.

Rather counterintuitively, it contains 58% fish (€ 7.97 / kg) ... And at Picard, interestingly, the “breaded hake portions” sold two cents cheaper contain 72% fish.

It is true that the packaging is more austere… "One can wonder if Findus, with its marketing, does not inflate its prices a little bit", supposes the lookout of Foodwatch.

Blind testing of breaded fish by a fishmonger

And in terms of taste: is there a real difference?

To find out, Charles Guirriec, a great connoisseur and boss of the ethical online fishmonger Poiscaille, was asked to taste these three frozen products blindly.

“Breaded takes up a lot of space,” he says, blindfolded, of the Findus “100% fillet quality” stick, 58% fish.

Basically, you don't taste like fish.

"

And when he eats the 51% fish Croustibat “Petits trésors”?

“To me, it looks more like breaded fish brandade than it really…” He stops and takes a bite.

“Yes, there it is!

You have to look for it, the taste of fish.

"

Beware of touting indications

And the Picard with 72% fish?

“Clearly, he's the one with the most fish of the three,” he says.

I wouldn't have believed the difference would be so clear.

”In our taster's ranking, Picard comes first, followed by“ Quality 100% filet ”then“ Petit Trésors ”from Croustibat.

Surprise (or not): the preferred products are those that contain the most fish.

Conclusion: to choose your breaded fish, do not rely on the touting indications on the front of the packaging but rather on the quantity of fish, written in small characters in the list of ingredients.

The more there is, the better it will be, and not necessarily for more.