25 times mixed minced meat in the test - comments on the test results

Ground beef is prone to germs and spoils quickly. Fresh from the grinder, the meat is juicy red. If it is stored longer, it turns gray or brown. But the color alone is not a sign of freshness. Hygiene during processing also counts. How good is the minced meat in the supermarket and at the butcher? FOUNDATION WARENTEST put it to the test. Result: Long-life minced meat packaged in a modified atmosphere contains the fewest germs.

In the test: 25 samples of mixed minced meat. Purchasing in the greater Berlin area. Packaged goods with a consumption period of several days, packaged fresh goods from the self-service shelf and loose minced meat from supermarkets and butchers. Prices: 3,00 to 11,00 euros per kilo.
 
Of the 25 mixed minced meat products that Stiftung Warentest examined for the September issue of its test magazine, the organic minced meat from EO Komma, which was purchased at the counter, performed the worst. It not only failed in microbiology because it was too heavily contaminated with spoilage germs, but was also "poor" in terms of smell and taste.

The testers also rated five other products as "poor", four as "sufficient". This was mostly loose counter goods or packaged goods from the supermarket that are to be consumed on the day of purchase. The reason for the poor performance was again spoilage bacteria, with one product a significantly increased number of the intestinal germ Escherichia Coli was detected, which can get into the minced meat due to poor hygiene.

Minced meat, which has a shelf life of several days at 2 degrees Celsius, performed significantly better. Every second of the ten products tested achieved a "good", none was worse than "sufficient". It is packed in a protective atmosphere and only manufactured in companies with special EU approval. The mixed hack from Edeka, Plus, Aldi (North), Lidl and Kaufland was the least contaminated with germs. It cost 3,40 euros per kilogram, 25 cents less at Kaufland.

Stiftung Warentest advises consumers to trust their senses. If the meat smells unpleasant or has turned gray, it should be thrown away, advise the testers. Ground beef should be used quickly and allowed to cook through for at least XNUMX minutes when cooking, roasting or grilling to prevent foodborne infections such as salmonellosis. Pregnant women should avoid raw (minced) meat.

Detailed information on minced meat can be found in the September issue of test.

Notes:

These test results are not entirely surprising. The winners were the minced meat portions, which were manufactured in central factories in accordance with the strict rules of the European minced meat guidelines. The protective measures prescribed by law, as well as the suffering of responsibility in the event of problems with the products, lead to an almost clinically pure minced meat production, which is secured with a large number of microbiological controls.

In addition, another factor makes the business easier for these central minced meat manufacturers: It is the short distances between slaughtering, cutting up and processing, if possible under one roof, which also ensure that the meat goes through the grinder with as few germs as possible. In the days of butchers who slaughtered themselves, they also had this advantage in terms of hygiene. Today, fewer and fewer butchers slaughter their own meat, often because it would be too expensive due to legal requirements. However, this means that the previous advantage in hygiene compared to the trade is lost, which is also a step towards the butcher around the corner becoming less important, unfortunately.

And then there is another point to be noted regarding the reproducibility of the results: the discounter goods are manufactured by national specialists, so the result should actually be representative of "minced meat from the discounter". The packaged goods from the retail refrigerated counter and the butcher's minced meat were bought on a random day in the Berlin area. The result gives an indication of possible problems of these providers, but it cannot be more than a regional snapshot.

Source: Berlin / Ahrensburg [ Thomas Proeller ]