Alcohol checks often result in incredulous horror on the part of drivers. It was only a couple of beers and it had been a long time since the last one. Breath and blood tests can, of course, prove the opposite. But now a urine sample can even show which alcoholic beverages a person has consumed. And if, on the other hand, it is known exactly what was drunk, then the time at which the last glass was drunk can be determined. This is what the Dr. Andreas Bank from the Institute for Forensic Medicine at the University of Cologne.

Different drinks contain different alcohols. In addition to the ethanol, which causes the intoxication and is detected in blood alcohol tests, a large number of other accompanying alcohols can be included. Among other things, they make a good wine. This is why by far the largest amount of accompanying alcohol can be detected in wine compared to beer (Kölsch) and vodka. Alcoholic beverages such as vodka, on the other hand, contain practically only ethanol.

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New study on the heart-protective effect of cocoa presented at the European Cardiology Congress 2004:

Dark chocolate strengthens the blood vessels: This is the result of a scientific study presented today at the Congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) in Munich. The flavonoids in cocoa, Greek heart specialists reported, reduce oxidative stress in the cells and improve the function of the endothelium, a cell layer on the inner surface of the blood vessels that is important for heart health, over several hours.

"When we gave the study participants 100 grams of dark chocolate, their vascular function was significantly improved. And this effect usually lasted more than three hours," reported study leader Dr. Charalambos Vlachopoulos, Cardiac Specialist at Athens Medical University.

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Barefoot Jr. moves up on the Westfleisch board - Westfleisch group establishes itself among TOP 5 in Europe

Against the background of the significant structural change in the European meat industry, a powerful group of companies emerges from the joint market presence of the self-service sausage specialist BARFUSS and the cooperative meat marketer WESTFLEISCH. 

After the approval of their supervisory board on September 3, 2004, WESTFLEISCH eG, Münster, acquires 100% of the shares in Bernhard BARFUSS GmbH & Co KG with a notarial deed. In the future, the company will trade as BARFUSS GmbH. Parts of the purchase price, which is kept confidential, will be converted into preference shares in WESTFLEISCH Finanz AG. 

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Shop prices increased slightly over the course of 2004

Beef consumption in Germany has recovered noticeably since the BSE crisis. After the first BSE case appeared on the German market at the end of 2000, (human) consumption fell to just 6,8 kilograms in the following year, after having fluctuated between 9,5 and 10,5 kilograms in the previous years. After that, consumption increased again by two kilograms and amounted to 2003 kilograms in 8,80.

A rising consumption trend is also becoming apparent in the current year, but despite higher production in the first half of the year, the supply was not as plentiful in relation to the demand. Among other things, this is due to the widespread coolness of spring and early summer, which caused consumers to reach for beef more often than in the hot previous year.

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ZMP provides information at the Central Agricultural Festival (ZLF)

Almost every third German cattle is in Bavaria: According to the most recent cattle census results, the farmers there kept around 2004 million cattle in May 3,6, in the entire federal territory there were 13,2 million. The Bavarian cattle population decreased by 3,4 percent to a similar extent as at the national level.

The market observers from the ZMP Central Market and Price Report Office GmbH will provide information about the current situation on the beef market at the Bavarian Central Agriculture Festival (ZLF) from September 18 to 26, 2004 in Munich – Hall 5064, Stand 160. Anyone interested in cattle breeds can also visit , examine around XNUMX breeding cattle: From the German Fleckvieh to the Red Holsteins to the heavyweight Charolais, the Bavarian farmers will be presenting their breeds in the ZLF animal tent and the Great Ring.

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Livestock and Meat

At the turn of the month, the payout prices for young bulls rose as domestic demand for beef picked up. Cows for slaughter and heifers were mostly settled at stable conditions and there were no longer any price reductions, as in the past few weeks. According to a preliminary overview, young bulls of the meat trading class R3 brought in a weekly average of 2,64 euros per kilogram slaughter weight and thus three cents more than in the previous week. The prices for cows in class O3 increased slightly on the national average by one cent to 2,06 euros per kilogram slaughter weight. At the meat wholesale markets, the prices for beef also increased, especially leg products were increasingly in demand nationwide and were advertised in numerous retail campaigns. In addition, steady exports of beef cattle to Russia supported the local beef market, while business with France and Spain became somewhat more difficult. – The livestock prices are likely to remain stable to firm in the coming week, since sales campaigns are planned again and the holidays are coming to an end in Germany's most populous federal state, North Rhine-Westphalia. – The prices paid for slaughter calves tended to firm at the turn of the month and veal prices also rose if demand was satisfactory. – On the veal market, prices were only just able to hold their own with subdued demand and a sufficient supply, in some cases they were declining.

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But fewer breeding animals in Germany

The sheep population in Germany has remained stable over the past census year. This emerges from the provisional information from the Federal Statistical Office on livestock census. According to this, there were around 2,70 million sheep in this country in May of this year, exactly as many as twelve months earlier. While the stocks in the former federal territory increased by 0,3 percent to 1,95 million animals, they fell by 0,7 percent to 746.000 sheep in the new federal states.

The strongest population reduction was found in female animals for breeding over one year old. Their number fell nationwide compared to May 2003 by 2,1 percent to around 1,66 million animals. There could therefore be a reduction in sheep populations in the coming year. Due to the smaller number of female breeding animals, there is likely to be a lower production of lambs in the coming months.

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Growth driver in canned vinegar

 While demand from German consumers for pickled preserves is stagnating overall, antipasti such as pickled dried tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic cloves, olives or peppers stuffed with sheep's cheese are still a hit in the range. They still form a small but growing segment among canned vinegar products, which also include pickled beetroot, tomato peppers, celery salad and mixed pixels.

In 2003, German private households bought around 53.000 tons of canned vinegar, which was 1,9 percent more than in 2002. Antipasti accounted for around 5.000 tons of this. That is a further 35 percent more than in the previous year, after demand had already doubled in 2001 and 2002.

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Minister Backhaus: High numbers of wild boar require increased hunting

In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a total of 2003 hoofed game (red, fallow, mouflon, roe deer and wild boar) were shot in the 04/1 hunting year, ie in the period from April 2003, 31 to March 2004, 129.064. The hunting result achieved is thus again at a similarly high level as in the previous year. In the previous hunting year, 131.872 game were killed.

"The high numbers of red deer and fallow deer killed reflect the great efforts of the hunters in the care and hunting of game stocks. But they are still not enough to significantly reduce locally excessive stocks," says the Minister for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Dr. Till Backhaus (SPD).

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Meat manufacturer fails with claims for damages

Meat manufacturer Hermes' lawsuit against Greenpeace was dismissed last week by the Cologne Regional Court. Hermes had demanded compensation because the Greenpeace guide "Food without genetic engineering" warned against the company's products. Greenpeace has asked Hermes, along with 450 other food manufacturers and retailers, about the use of genetically modified plants in the production of milk, meat and eggs. According to the Cologne judgment, the rating of these companies in the guidebook is permissible due to the freedom of expression guaranteed in the Basic Law.

"It is a great success for consumer protection that information about genetic engineering for food is also legally sound," says Corinna Hoelzel from the Greenpeace consumer organization PurchasingNet. "The majority of consumers want non-GMO food and the need for information is still enormous. To date we have distributed over 1,3 million shopping guides to consumers."

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The egg market in August

In the main holiday month of August, the supply of eggs in Germany was consistently plentiful and exceeded demand in all segments, including alternative products. The early slaughtering of older animals reduced egg production, but this was not enough to stabilize the market. The situation only eased towards the end of the month, partly because local suppliers were able to export more to third countries due to the low price level. On the import side, on the other hand, hardly any goods reached the German market - apart from deliveries within the framework of fixed trade relationships - a consequence of the catastrophically low egg prices.

Consumer demand has been sluggish in recent weeks due to the holiday season. In addition, the market participants were unsettled by the turbulence surrounding the purchasing strategy of the discounter Aldi-Nord and other food retail groups attached to it. At the end of August, demand recovered somewhat with the holidays coming to an end in more and more federal states.

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