Cheap offers attract more buyers

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Olive oil and declared rapeseed oil increased

Cooking oil consumption in German private households rose in 2003, and at 145,3 million liters the quantity purchased was 2,8 percent higher than in the previous year. With a share of 34 percent, sunflower oil continued to play the most important role in the range, but lost one percentage point compared to the previous year. Vegetable oils with an undeclared composition also held a high market share at 23 percent, but this was three percentage points lower than in 2002. Rapeseed oil is often used for these vegetable oils, but this is not apparent to the consumer.

Olive oil claimed third place in the edible oil segment last year with a share of 20 percent, two percentage points more than the year before. Safflower oil and corn oil held their ground at seven percent and five percent, respectively.

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The Netherlands is the first EU member to meet the EU requirements for “self-regulatory programs” under EU Regulation 96/23.

With effect from 1 April 2004, trade in pigs in the Netherlands is restricted to animals that comply with the Prohibited Substances Sampling and Analysis (SAFE) programme. The samples are collected by the independent control institute Control Bureau Animal Sector (CBD). The tests for prohibited substances are carried out with samples of urine and feed.

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In almost all countries of the European Union, pork is the most widely consumed type of meat. The only exception is Great Britain, where a little more poultry meat is preferred. Spain has the highest per capita consumption with 69,6 kg, but Germany also has quite a high consumption with 54 kg. These figures come from the recently published brochure Core Figures Cattle, Meat and Eggs 7, published by the Dutch Livestock, Meat and Egg Economic Groups.

The economic groups have compiled the figures on pork consumption in the European Union on the basis of information from Eurostat and the national statistics of the member states. However, the information must be interpreted with some caution. In practice, it turns out that the actual consumption is much lower than the calculated consumption. Consumption was determined on the basis of bone-in meat and including use as pet food. Calculations carried out in the Netherlands have made it clear that actual consumption is around half of consumption.

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Help with choosing healthy and safe meat

Meat is a valuable food that goes well with a healthy diet. This is the basic message of the information office of the Dutch meat industry in its nutritional information for the (Dutch) consumer. The Nutrition Center, which is responsible for providing independent information on nutrition in the Netherlands, also wants to help consumers consciously choose healthy and safe meat. With this aim in mind, the nutrition center has developed the meat guide (Vleeswijzer) together with the information office of the Dutch meat industry and the authority for food and goods. The meat guide is at the heart of the “Wijzer met Vlees” (“Smarter with Meat”) campaign by the nutrition center.

The meat guide offers clearly arranged practical information for the selection, storage and preparation of meat. He deals with the most common meat parts of pork, beef, lamb, veal and chicken. For each piece of meat, the most common preparation method, preparation time and nutritional values ​​(energy, fat and saturated fats) are given. In addition, the meat guide contains a number of things worth knowing about the nutritional values ​​of meat as well as instructions for cooling, freezing and thawing. Finally, the meat guide provides information on the shelf life of the various types of meat when stored in the refrigerator or freezer and on the hygiene requirements for the preparation of meat.

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Since April 2004 Mag. Dietmar Karner (39 years old) has taken over the marketing management of the international spice supplier WIBERG in Salzburg. Born in Upper Austria, he started his career in the international branded goods group Bahlsen. The focus of his work was on product management for the brands crunchips, crisps and pomsticks. Karner then took over the management of an electricity trading company at a subsidiary of Stadtwerke Bremen. In autumn 2002 he returned to the food business as sales and marketing manager at Gourmet Menu Service GmbH & CoKG in St. Pölten.

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Focus report of the federal health reporting published

With the first, just published focus report of the federal health reporting, there is for the first time a comprehensive overview of the state of health and health care of children and adolescents in Germany. The report entitled "Health of Children and Adolescents" contains over 200 pages of basic demographic data (including the proportion of children in the population), data on the socio-economic framework under which children grow up today, and an inventory of the health situation and health behavior of Children as well as information on the use of preventive and curative services.

Since no comprehensive epidemiological data are currently available, the authors from the University of Cologne and the Robert Koch Institute have used various data sources: official statistics, data from statutory health insurance, epidemiological studies and results from public health and youth research. On the basis of these data sources, the status and changes in the health situation, the frequency of selected diseases, e.g. bronchial asthma or neurodermatitis, as well as the health behavior of children and adolescents are presented - if possible also with regional and temporal differentiation. Particular attention is paid to influencing factors that can impair health and development in childhood or pose particular health risks for adulthood, such as obesity or smoking.

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Germans more skeptical

Consumer confidence in food is high in the UK, Denmark and Norway, but low in Italy and Portugal and relatively low in Germany. In addition, research shows that consumers in these countries are particularly skeptical about meat products, quick service restaurants and the food processing industry. These results come from the recently published study "Trust in Food in Europe, A Comparative Analysis" which includes data from surveys in these six countries. The study was carried out as part of the project EU TRUST IN FOOD (2002-2004) This project should lead to a better understanding of the reasons for different levels of consumer trust in food and their implications Institutional studies were carried out in addition to surveys in the six countries and at EU level The initiative is part of broader EU research into consumer attitudes and behaviour, socio-economic and demographic factors and the acceptability of typical food products.

“Today's consumers expect healthy and safe food and increasingly want to know where their food comes from. That is why we are focusing on a new 'fork-to-farm' approach in the EU's research programmes, with a focus on the interests of consumers and their attitudes towards food," said European Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin. “Food production must meet consumer expectations, as well as environmental, health and competitiveness objectives. This requires an ambitious research program with strong public-private collaboration at European level."

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EU Commission is urging Germany to comply with the protection of the designation "Parmigiano Reggiano"

The European Commission has sent a final written warning (reasoned opinion) to the German government for failing to properly apply EU legislation on the protection of protected designations of origin (PDO) to the appellation "Parmigiano Reggiano". The use of this designation, registered at European Union level since 1996, is de jure reserved exclusively for producers in a defined Italian territory who produce this cheese according to a mandatory specification.

According to European legislation on Protected Designations of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indications (PGI)(1), Member States must protect protected designations against any misappropriation, imitation or evocation, even where the true origin of the product is indicated or if it is a translation of the protected designation. This also applies to the designation 'Parmigiano Reggiano', which has been registered since 1996(2).

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Agriculture Minister Josef Miller fears serious disadvantages for the Bavarian agriculture and meat industry as well as the Kulmbach region due to the planned restructuring of the Federal Research Institute for Nutrition and Food. He has therefore asked Federal Agriculture Minister Renate Künast to reconsider the planned downsizing at the Kulmbach branch - the former Federal Institute for Meat Research (BAFF).

In view of the great importance of animal husbandry and agriculture in Bavaria, the former federal institute has always been an important cooperation partner for the meat and agricultural industries, said Miller. With the integration of the BAFF into the Federal Research Institute for Nutrition and Food on January 1st, the Free State had already lost the only independent federal research institute in the field of agriculture. According to Miller, a reduced scientific commitment would also impair the efficiency of the numerous food industry and food technology companies located in the region. In addition, the planned downsizing would put an additional burden on the labor market in structurally weak Upper Franconia.

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Summary

The average consumer's nitrite intake from nitrite-cured meat products is compared with nitrite exposure from other sources; these are the reduction of dietary nitrate, mainly from plant foods, and the endogenous synthesis of nitric oxide, NO. Nitrite from meat products represents only a fraction of the total nitrite exposure. Epidemiological studies on the question of a connection between the consumption of nitrite-cured meat products and cancer of the stomach or brain are viewed critically. An indication of a connection between the two parameters cannot be derived from the studies considered.

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