On this page:

• Bone broths vs stocks
• Are concentrated stocks any good?
• Making your own stock
• Broths and stocks comparison tables

As a desire for convenience converges with a growing interest in premium products, the range of stocks on offer at the supermarket just keeps expanding.Ìý

Once upon a time, if you didn’t want to make your own stock, your only option was stock cubes. Then came powders, liquids, concentrates and, recently, bone broths.Ìý

With more types of stocks available now than ever before, it’s hard to know if one’s better than another. We compare concentrates, liquid stocks and bone broths to see how they differ.

Bone broths vs stocks

In recent years, bone broths have been added to the crowded stock section of supermarkets. We’ve seen products from premium brands such as Maggie Beer; national brands such as Campbells; and supermarket brands like Aldi and Coles.Ìý

So what’s the difference between a bone broth and a stock?Ìý

ÌÇÐÄVlog home economist Fiona Mair says that while some of the ingredients can vary, it’s mainly the intended purpose that sets them apart.Ìý

“Bone broths are for heating and drinking, and they often claim to have nutritional and health benefits, which come from the collagen, gelatine, amino acids, and minerals they contain,” she says.Ìý

“On the other hand, stocks are used as a base in soups, risottos, sauces, gravies and casseroles.”

Bone broths can still be used as a stock substitute, though.

Ingredients compared

Looking at the products in our comparison – all of them found in the stock section of the supermarket – a few things stood out about the ingredients.Ìý

Both meat and bonesÌýcan beÌýused in the production ofÌýboth bone broths and stocks,Ìýbut brothsÌýtend to more often be made from just the bones.

Additives in the bone broths are minimal and may include herbs, vegetables and apple cider vinegar (used to help extract nutrients from bones). You might also find collagen peptides and gelatin.Ìý

Of the bone broths we looked at, the Aldi Chef’s Cupboard product had the most unusual ingredients, including goji berries, Chinese yam, shitake mushrooms, milk vetch root and polygonatum (also known as Solomon’s seal). In contrast, stocks are more likely to include flavour enhancers and powders, as well as ingredients such as thickeners and colours.Ìý

Some of the stocks we looked at included reconstituted stock, which means that stock concentrates were diluted with water in order to produce them. If purchasing these products, consider whether you might be better off buying stock powders or cubes and adding the water yourself.

We also found that broths are, on average, lower in sodium than stocks.

Cost comparisons

Cost is another obvious difference. Looking at the products we compared, liquid stocks were much cheaper than the bone broths.Ìý

You’ll pay on average just $0.81/100ml for the liquid stocks and concentrates in our comparison.Ìý

The bone broths we looked at cost 77% more on average: $1.44/100ml.

When comparing the price per 100ml, the cheapest product in our comparison was The Natural Stock Co Chicken Stock Concentrate. A 160g jar will set you back $10.95 but makes 6.5L, meaning it will cost just $0.17/100ml.Ìý

At the other end of the scale, Maggie Beer’s Natural Chicken Free Range Bone Broth costs $8.50 for a 500ml pouch or $1.70/100ml.Ìý

Expensive vs cheap stock

While stocks tend to be cheaper overall than bone broths, there’s still a wide range of prices.Ìý

Liquid stocks can cost as little as $0.18/100ml (Aldi’s Chef’s Cupboard Chicken Flavour Liquid Stock 1L), all the way up to $1.18/100ml (Matt Moran’s My Perfect Chicken Stock 500ml).Ìý

Also near the top of the list for price were the Coles Slow Cooked Chicken Stock ($1/100ml) and the Maggie Beer Natural Chicken Stock ($0.90/100ml).Ìý

So what’s the difference? While the Aldi stock is inexpensive, it contains additives such as maltodextrin and vegetable protein extract. In fact, four of the cheapest five stocks contain maltodextrin. In contrast, the Matt Moran product has no additives of this kind.Ìý

Fiona says when buying a stock, look for a product that contains mostly natural ingredients, such as meat bones, vegetables, herbs, water and salt.Ìý

“A good chicken stock should smell like chicken, have a balanced flavour and not be too salty,” she says. “It should have a smooth, slightly silky mouthfeel and should be clear, not cloudy. A natural golden colour is also a sign of quality.”Ìý

Are concentrated stocks any good?

With many of the liquid stocks in our comparison you’re essentially paying for (and carrying home) a lot of water. So why not buy a concentrate? They tend to be cheaper, too.Ìý

The Continental Stock Pot Sensations works out to be just $0.23 per 100ml, the Natural Stock Company product costs $0.17/100ml, and the Vegeta Chicken Stock Pots are $0.20/100ml.Ìý

“With a concentrated stock, you have control of how much you want to make or add to your recipe,” says Fiona.Ìý

“It is much more economical in the long run, has less packaging and reduces the weight in your shopping bag. They’ll also take up less space in your pantry or fridge.”

Sodium and additives in broths and stocks

The bone broths we looked at tended to have fewer additives than the stocks and concentrates, and most seemed to align with broth’s reputation as a ‘wellness’ product.

On the other hand, the stocks we compared contained a wide range of sweeteners, sugars, flavour enhancers, thickeners and texture agents, stabilisers and preservatives. Some contained added fats and oils, and dehydrated and powdered ingredients were also present.Ìý

While none of these are inherently bad, if you’re trying to avoid too many additives or processed ingredients, be careful when buying these products.Ìý

Sodium is another big differentiator. Liquid stocks have approximately 48% more sodium on average than bone broths (298mg versus 182mg).

However, sodium can vary widely in the liquid stocks we compared: The Campbell’s Real Chicken stock contained 447mg per 100ml, while Maggie Beer’s Natural Chicken Stock was lowest in sodium, just 44mg per 100ml.

Making your own stock

While convenience is an important consideration for many of us, Fiona says it’s very simple to make your own chicken stock. You don’t even need to strictly follow a recipe.Ìý

“Keep a plastic bag in the freezer to add any vegetable peels or leftover bones from dinner. When you’re ready to make a stock, add them to the pot,” she says.

If you’d prefer a bit more guidance, Fiona’s recipe below is an easy one to start with.Ìý

Broths and stocks comparison tables

The post Bone broths and stocks compared appeared first on ÌÇÐÄVlog.

On this page:

• Are heavy metals harmful?
• What we found
• How the retailers responded
• Herbs and spices compared with other foods
• How heavy metals get into our food
• What you can do

Dried herbs and spices can play a key role in all types of dishes, from sweet gingerbread to savoury curries. They’re a tasty alternative to salt and they help add flavour to our favourite meals.

A recent study by our US counterpart, , found that some popular supermarket herbs and spices contain contaminants such as arsenic and lead, so ÌÇÐÄVlog was curious to see if Australian consumers are being exposed to the same issue.Ìý

We had 70 samples of seven different herbs and spices tested for heavy metals through an external NATA-accredited lab. There were traces of lead in every sample, and traces of arsenic in 86% of the samples. While some contain higher amounts of heavy metals than others, only a very high consumption of these products would lead to heavy metal toxicity.

Are heavy metals harmful?

All heavy metals are toxic to humans at higher levels. But some heavy metals, such as iron, copper, magnesium and zinc, are required for human health. Others have no health benefits.

The heavy metals associated with the most serious effects on human health are lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury.ÌýLead, cadmium and mercury accumulate in the body, so frequently consuming even small amounts may be harmful. Exposure to high levels of lead can cause a number of health effects such as brain damage, intellectual disabilities, heart disease, bone fractures and kidney dysfunction. Cadmium has been associated with weak bones and kidney disease.

Arsenic doesn’t accumulate in the body but has been labelled by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a compound that can cause cancer. Respiratory diseases and skin problems are among the other complications that can result from chronic exposure to arsenic.

Dr Ayanka Wijayawardena, a heavy metals researcher at the University of Newcastle, says there are a number of factors to consider when weighing up the danger to consumers, including the total concentration in the herbs and spices, how much you ingest, how often you consume them, and how much gets absorbed by the body.

“Spices are utilised in very minute quantities in daily life. If we calculate daily or weekly intake, I assume those metal ingestions might be within safe limits,” says Wijayawardena. “Having said that, we cannot completely deny any health risk at this stage as even in small quantities, the body mass index of the person exposed could also dictate the effects as well.”

So even though herbs and spices usually make up a small part of most people’s diets, young children, for example, would be more susceptible to their effects. People who are pregnant or breastfeeding also need to be extra cautious about lead as it could pass to developing brains and organs.

What we found

We bought 70 samples from 12 different brands of seven different herbs or spices:

• basil
• cumin
• ginger (ground)
• oregano
• paprika
• thyme
• turmeric.

Ideally, we’d be able to test every herb and spice on the market, but we started off small not knowing what we’d find. We made an effort to test popular brands available in major supermarkets but there may have been some brands we missed and some types of herbs and spices we left out.

The following products contained the least amount of total heavy metals in their category in our test:

• Spice & Co and G-Fresh Ground Ginger
• Masterfoods Cumin
• (Aldi) Stonemill Basil
• Coles Paprika
• Spice & Co Oregano
• Woolworths Thyme.

But it’s important to know that the heavy metal concentrations in any of the products can easily change between batches, so these products may not be the better performers if we were to test a new batch.

Use the grey arrows below the infographic to flick through the slides.

How the retailers responded

The Australian food regulatory body Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) sets maximum levels of heavy metals in certain food categories when it has been determined that there is a potential risk to public health.

But dried herbs and spices don’t fall into any of those categories, so they only have to comply with the overall maximum levels, which are quite high – none of the herbs and spices we tested went over these blanket maximum levels set by FSANZ.

For categories like herbs and spices that are only subject to the blanket maximum levels, FSANZ states that: “Food must be safe and suitable for human consumption. For example, the concentration of contaminants and natural toxicants should be kept as low as reasonably achievable.”

And even though there aren’t limits for heavy metals in herbs and spices, it’s an interesting exercise to apply instead the limit for arsenic in salt, which is consumed in small amounts and in similar ways to herbs and spices. When we do that, the arsenic we found in our batch of Master of Spices ground ginger and Woolworth’s oregano would exceed this limit.

We informed the companies that sell these herbs and spices of our findings. We heard back from Aldi, Woolworths, Coles, McCormick and Simply Organic. Aldi removed their Stonemill ground ginger from the shelves to undertake independent testing of the spice, and the other retailers who responded all mentioned the lack of guidelines for the limit of heavy metals in herbs and spices.

Herbs and spices compared with other foods

Every few years, FSANZ estimates Australians’ dietary exposure to certain contaminants, such as heavy metals, by doing an analysis of a variety of food categories.Ìý

This is called the Australian Total Diet Study (ATDS), and in the 25th study, over 1500 samples of 88 different types of food and beverages were collected across 2013 and 2014, and combined into 508 composite samples for analysis.ÌýThese don’t include herbs and spices because previous exposure estimates conducted by FSANZ have not considered herbs and spices to be significant contributors to heavy metals in the diet.

Arsenic was detected in just 28% of the ATDS samples. In our test, arsenic was detected in 86% of the herbs and spices we sent to the lab. The highest arsenic concentration (in a non-seafood source) that came from the ATDS was a rice-based breakfast cereal, which contained half the level of arsenic that we discovered in some of the spices in our test.

Lead was detected in 15% of the samples in the FSANZ study, but was detected in all of our herb and spice samples. The average concentration in our herbs and spices was five times higher than that of mussels, the food found to have the most contamination.

Even though we tend to consume smaller quantities of herbs and spices compared with other foods, there’s a case for further investigation of this category by including it in the Australian Total Diet Study.

Having seen the results of our tests, FSANZ told us that it “notes the findings of the ÌÇÐÄVlog investigation” and is “intending to look at contaminants as part of the next ATDS and will consider the outcomes of this analysis in planning this work”.

How heavy metals get into our food

Pollution of heavy metals is an increasing problem worldwide due to population growth and land use changes.

Heavy metals can enter the food chain throughout the growing, manufacturing, packaging or storage stages of food production.Ìý

During the growing stage, polluted soil, air or water can contaminate herb and spice plants. The soil, air or water can be polluted by inadequately treated sewage, contaminated groundwater, pesticides and industrial activity.

Herbs and spices sold in Australian supermarkets are generally not produced in Australia, which makes it harder to know what they’ve been exposed to before ending up on our shelves. Soil testing and sewage treatment standards may differ internationally, and the brands may use different suppliers from batch to batch.

Associate Professor Suzie Reichman, from the University of Melbourne, has published studies about heavy metals in foods. She suggests that some of the explanations as to why heavy metals were detected in our test may have been because they’re grown on farms with heavy road use or industrial processing nearby, or that they’re being grown on contaminated soil.Ìý

According to Reichman, some of these heavy metals, such as antimony, can come from vehicle brake pads, nearby mines or untreated sewage, and that our results raise questions about the manufacturing process and whether the plants have been washed before drying.

This isn’t the first time heavy metals have been found in imported goods. A showed heavy metals and harmful pesticides found in products sold in South Asian grocery stores across Australia, and Reichman’sÌý available in Australian supermarkets found arsenic above EU guidelines for children in products imported from the USA and products made in Australia (products in the study from Europe, Thailand and China came in under the guidelines).Ìý

What you can do

Heavy metals should be kept as low as possible in the diet. The herbs and spices we found to generally have lower amounts of lead and arsenic in our test were cumin, oregano, paprika and turmeric. Not all heavy metals were found in the batches we tested, and mercury and tin were present in only negligible amounts.

Herbs and spices make up a small part of the average person’s diet, and a serving is small at about half a gram or less. But you need to consider how many servings you have, how many spices you use in one meal, and how many times a week you have them and of course, clean all fresh produce thoroughly before consuming.

Consider your exposure to heavy metals from your total diet and even your whole environment. You may be exposed to heavy metals through paint, pollution and household items.

FSANZ has more information aboutÌý.ÌýÌý

The post ÌÇÐÄVlog finds heavy metals in supermarket herbs and spices appeared first on ÌÇÐÄVlog.

On this page:

• What is turmeric?
• More research is needed
• Does turmeric have side effects?
• How to make a turmeric latte

So, what’s all the fuss about?

What is turmeric?

This yellow spice, prepared from the root of a plant called Curcuma longa, has widespread use in Indian and Southeast Asian cuisine. It has a warm, bitter taste and is frequently used to flavour or colour curries, rice and a range of other foods including mustards, butters and cheeses.Ìý

Turmeric – specifically, its extract curcumin – has also been used in both traditional Indian (Ayurvedic) and Chinese medicine to treat a range of ailments affecting the blood, liver, joints, immune system, and digestive tract. Not only is it thought to provide pain relief, it’s touted as a potential cure for diabetes, heart disease and even cancer.Ìý

But does turmeric’s golden reputation stand up to scrutiny? We take a look at the evidence behind the claims.

More research is needed

Although some of the research looks promising, there are issues worth considering before you fork out for curcumin supplements.Ìý

Poorly absorbed, unstable, reactive

One of the major limitations of curcumin use in humans is that it’s poorly absorbed – the body quickly processes and excretes it. Curcumin’s poor bioavailability, along with its reputation for being unstable and reactive (it can give false positives in drug screening tests), has prompted some researchers to warn that positive outcomes of trials suggesting a therapeutic effect may not necessarily be attributable to curcumin.Ìý

Chemists have found ways to enhance the bioavailability of curcumin, such as encapsulating it in lipids (fats) or combining it with piperine (the substance in black pepper that gives it flavour), although the improvement in bioavailability varies depending on the approach.Ìý

Definitive evidence lacking

Many of the clinical trials using curcumin have been conducted with small sample sizes and are short in duration. Even if it’s a good quality randomised placebo controlled trial, a limited number of participants reduces the strength of the evidence. It’s difficult to draw a conclusion on a beneficial dose and how long to take curcumin, or even the population group that can benefit the most from curcumin.Ìý

Authors of a number of the studies themselves suggest small sample sizes and other issues with methodology mean there isn’t sufficient evidence to draw definitive conclusions about the effectiveness of curcumin and that more rigorous and larger studies are needed.Ìý

Are turmeric tablets worth buying?

You can buy curcumin, the active extract of turmeric, in supplement form from various retailers including chemists and supermarkets. But the different products are hard to compare as their features and specifications vary widely.

• Active ingredient: the curcumin content of the supplements we’ve seen in supermarkets and chemists range from 36–1200mg per pill.
• Recommended dosage: this could be one, two or three pills a day.
• Bioavailability: this depends on whether or not they’ve been formulated for enhanced bioavailability, as well as the method (e.g. lipid encapsulated vs added piperine).
• Format: they’re available as tablets, capsules and gummies.
• Price: the price per 1000mg curcumin – a typical daily dosage used in many of the clinical trials – ranges from 56 cents up to $16.66 in the supplements we’ve seen.

What about food and drinks with added turmeric?

Don’t rely on eating the occasional handful of turmeric dusted nuts washed down with a turmeric tea to deliver a significant dose of curcumin that will benefit your health. Not only is the amount and bioavailability of curcumin a consideration, it also has a very short half-life. So unless you’re consuming it regularly – as in a traditional Indian diet which might include turmeric twice a day – it’s difficult to maintain helpful blood levels of curcumin.

Until more high-quality randomised controlled trials are conducted to confirm the benefits of curcumin supplementation, it’s probably best to simply enjoy turmeric spice as part of a healthy, nutritious diet (and if you still fancy a turmeric latte, check out our recipe below to make your own at home).

Does turmeric have side effects?

Turmeric is generally thought to be safe. However, high doses or long-term use of turmeric may cause gastrointestinal problems including nausea or diarrhoea.Ìý

It’s also advised not to take turmeric supplements when pregnant.

How to make a turmeric latte

You’ll find multiple recipes for turmeric lattes online, but here’s one we quite like.

Ingredients

• 350mL milk (or your favourite alternative)
• ¼ tsp ground turmeric
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp maple syrup
• grind of black pepper

Method

1. Combine ingredients in a saucepan and whisk constantly over a gentle heat.
2. Once hot, pour into mugs and sprinkle with a little more cinnamon to serve.

The post What are the health benefits of turmeric? appeared first on ÌÇÐÄVlog.

On this page:

• Types of salt
• Microplastics in sea salt

Types of salt

You can pay from two to 30 times as much for gourmet rock or sea salts as you do for regular salt. Paying a price premium can get you a salt that’s “made by the action of sun and wind on pristine Australian sea water”, “harvested from the crystal clear seas on the east coast of Tasmania” or “handcrafted in small batches”. It can also get you pink salt that’s “found naturally deep inside the pristine Himalayan Mountains” – and has racked up a fair few food miles by the time it gets to our supermarket shelves.Ìý

• Sea salt is made by evaporating water from oceans or saltwater lakes, and rock salt comes from underground salt deposits. Both are available in a variety of coarseness levels.Ìý
• Standard table or cooking salt is typically refined and has anti-caking agents added to prevent clumping. Iodised salt has been fortified with iodine, which helps to address iodine deficiency health problems.Ìý
• Gourmet salt varieties tend to be less processed. The presence of impurities and minute traces of various minerals in specialty salt can result in slight differences in appearance and flavour, but the fact remains that all salt is essentially just sodium chloride.Ìý

Some specialty salts, however, claim to have a nutritional edge.Ìý

Is Himalayan salt better for your health?Ìý

Google ‘Himalayan salt benefits’ and you’ll find claims that its high mineral content helps improve hydration, balance your body’s pH levels, encourage better sleep, support weight loss and hormone balance and more.

And the labels of Himalayan salt products allude to its benefits too. Chef’s Choice Himalayan Pink Rock Salt, for example, boasts of its “high mineral level” and “beneficial minerals”. Master of Spices Himalayan Pink Rock Salt speaks of its “rich mineral elements … providing the body with all 84 natural elements it needs”. And Equagold Pure High Altitude Himalayan Coarse Pink Salt claims to be “rich in minerals”.Ìý

But according to the experts, these types of claims should be… well, taken with a grain of salt.Ìý

Jacqui Webster, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Population Salt Reduction, The George Institute, told us beneficial minerals present in Himalayan pink salt are only in very small amounts.

“Any health benefits from the trace amounts present would be offset by the detriment caused by the sodium content. Australians in general already eat too much salt, with much of it coming from the packaged food we’re eating, so we’re better off not adding salt to our food at all,” she says.Ìý

Heart Foundation dietitian Sian Armstrong says, “From the Heart Foundation’s perspective, salt is salt. All different types of salt – whether it’s gourmet or table, flakes or rocks – contain sodium, which is the part that’s damaging to health.Ìý

“Gourmet salts may, or in some cases do, contain essential minerals, but they’re in tiny amounts. To even get close to the recommended daily intake for those minerals you’d need to eat enormous amounts of salt, which isn’t good for you or even realistic. All of those essential minerals can be found in foods like fresh fruit and vegetables, and it’s far better to eat those instead,” she adds.Ìý

“We frequently get questions from the public about the supposed health benefits of certain salts, and people are definitely being misled by claims which aren’t always backed up by science. There’s a lot of misinformation out there, so our advice would be not to buy into the marketing hype.”Ìý

Nutrition claim regulation

If a food manufacturer claims its product contains certain nutrients, it’s making a ‘nutrition content claim’, the use of which is regulated by the Food Standards Code.Ìý

Nutrition content claims need to meet certain criteria – a food labelled as a ‘good source of calcium’ needs to contain no less than 25% of the recommended daily intake (RDI) of calcium in a serve, for example. And if it claims the presence of a nutrient, a serving of the food must contain at least 10% of the RDI.Ìý

Recent analysis of 25 rock and sea salt products, both specialty and standard, found most nutrients (and contaminants such as arsenic and lead) were either not detectable at all, or only present at levels of less than two percent of recommended (or tolerable) levels.Ìý

The researchers, from the Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office, concluded that while there’s no toxicological risk from consuming specialty salts, there are no nutritional benefits or advantages either. The results also suggest that a serve of specialty salt is very unlikely to provide 10% of the RDI for any of its claimed ‘beneficial minerals’.Ìý

The NSW Food Authority, one of the agencies administering the Food Standards Code, has already taken enforcement action against a supplier to amend its labels for making claims about the presence of minerals in its salt. We’ve provided details of the products we found making label claims about their mineral content to the relevant enforcement agencies for assessment.

How much salt is too much?

Research published in the Medical Journal of Australia estimated that Australian adults are eating 9.6g of salt a day – well above the World Health Organization-recommended maximum of 5g per day. The analysis of data from 31 published studies involving more than 16,000 people determined the average daily salt intake was 10.1g for men and 7.3g for women, and that intake hasn’t decreased over the past 25 years.Ìý

It’s the sodium in salt that’s bad for our health. Too much in our diets can lead to high blood pressure which is a risk factor for stroke, heart attack and chronic kidney disease. One gram of salt contains around 400mg of sodium, so to stay under 5g of salt a day we need to limit our sodium intake to about 2000mg.Ìý

But reducing your consumption isn’t as simple as sprinkling less salt over your fries or removing the salt shaker from your dining table. About 75% of the salt we eat is from processed foods – think bread, breakfast cereal, crackers, simmer sauces, processed meat, cheese, soups, instant noodles and other ready meals.Ìý

Eating more fresh foods – and fewer processed foods – is a good start. And choosing a lower salt option among similar packaged foods by checking the sodium content on the nutrition information panel can help too. As a guide, food with less than 400mg salt per 100g is good, and less than 120mg per 100g is best.

For help choosing lower sodium foods, download The George Institute’sÌý.

Microplastics in sea salt

If you needed another incentive to limit your salt intake, consider this.Ìý

It’s no secret that our oceans are accumulating plastic pollution, whether it be from mismanaged plastic waste or primary sources such as the microbeads and microfibres in personal care products and synthetic clothes. Now microplastics have been detected in consumer salt products originating from a number of countries including China, France, Australia, New Zealand and most recently the US.Ìý

Researchers at the University of Minnesota tested 12 different kinds of salt (including 10 sea salts) bought from US grocery stores. They found Americans could be ingesting upwards of 660 particles of plastic each year if they follow (US) health officials’ advice for the maximum recommended salt intake, even more if their intake is higher.Ìý

Cooking with salt

If you’re buying salt to use at home (in moderation, of course) it’s helpful to know which type of salt to use for what, and why – particularly if you’re spending extra dosh on the gourmet variety. We asked Australian chef and restaurateur Matt Moran for his advice.Ìý

Texture – grains, flakes or rocks?Ìý

Standard table salt

Moran uses this for blanching vegetables and general seasoning. “There is a cost benefit to this,” he says.

Fine salt flake

All cooked meats, fish and vegetables are sprinkled with a fine salt flake such as fleur de sel in Moran’s restaurants. “It’s very important that the flake isn’t too coarse as this will dominate your palate,” he says.

Salt bricks

Moran suggests using Himalayan salt bricks for seasoning or marinating. “Try slicing a piece of tuna sashimi and laying it on the salt block for a few minutes. The moisture from the tuna will pick up the salt. Leave it too long and it will start to cure and cook.

Taste – is there really a difference

“For me, specialty salt choice is a matter of personal choice,” says Moran. “To the novice you probably won’t taste the difference unless you compare them side by side. I would suggest tasting a few different salts on something that you enjoy eating – hot chips, a nice steak, or some roast chicken,” he says. “For instance with the chip, how do the different salts season the potato? Does it stick to the chip or fall off? Does it give texture? Is the flake too big and all you taste is salt?”

Salt prices compared

The post Is gourmet salt better for you? appeared first on ÌÇÐÄVlog.

On this page:

• Why we tested oregano
• What the spot check revealed
• What the companies said
• What's the motivation for adulteration?
• How food fraud affects consumers
• ÌÇÐÄVlog verdict
• Food fraud worldwide
• Testing for adulteration

Update 9 November 2016: Dried oregano brands will have to make sure there’s nothing in the bottle but oregano following action by the ACCC against a number of brands sold in Australia. Aldi and Menora will have to regularly commission tests to prove that products labelled as ‘oregano’ are just that and nothing else. The brands have also agreed to test other herb and spice products for possible adulteration. The ACCC took a somewhat lighter touch with smaller brands G Fresh Oregano Leaves, Mediterranean, Master of Spices Oregano Leaves and Spice & Co. Oregano Leaves, which have agreed through an “administrative resolution” to stop supplying adulterated oregano products and make sure their oregano products remain unadulterated going forward.

Why we tested oregano

Last year a study reported that 25% of dried oregano samples in the UK were adulterated. Concerned that Australian consumers might be affected by the same issue, ÌÇÐÄVlog decided to carry out a spot check on the authenticity of oregano being sold here. We bought a selection of dried oregano products from supermarkets, grocers and delis in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth – 12 different brands in total – and had a single sample of each product analysed.

What the spot check revealed

Shockingly, the results of a unique screening test for oregano adulteration showed that of the 12 samples, only five were 100% oregano. The other seven – from brands Master of Spices, Hoyt’s, Stonemill (Aldi), Spice & Co, Menora, Spencers and G Fresh – contained ingredients other than oregano, including olive leaves (in all seven samples) and sumac leaves (in two samples). Ingredients other than oregano made up between 50% and 90% of the adulterated samples.

It’s important to note that we tested just one sample of a single batch from each brand, so the results aren’t necessarily representative of each of those individual brands and companies’ whole range of oregano products.

But with the results of our spot check indicating potential breaches of the Australian Consumer Law for misleading or deceptive conduct and false or misleading representations about a product, we referred the matter to the ACCC and it has since initiated an investigation. The results also point to a substantial issue with the adulteration of oregano supplies in Australia, so ÌÇÐÄVlog thinks it’s imperative the ACCC gets to the bottom of the problem and takes appropriate action.

What the companies said

We contacted the companies behind the products that weren’t 100% oregano for comment. The feedback from those that responded suggests the adulteration may be occurring further back down the supply chain, and it’s not just consumers who are the victims of fraud.

“To find that we have been supplied a product that is not as per provided paperwork nor our own product specification is extremely shocking and disappointing,” Spice & Co told us. On learning of the situation it immediately notified its retailers and advised it would hold and not re-supply its product “until such time that we have absolute assurance of the integrity of the oregano”. It told us its supplier was undertaking further tests on this product and would conduct additional “authenticity/botanical” testing in future.

An Aldi Australia spokesperson told us the supermarket places high expectations on its suppliers to ensure they provide products that are manufactured to the best standard possible. “Aldi is currently analysing the recent test results of Stonemill Oregano with the supplier and will undertake any further action if and as required,” we were advised.

Aldi has since put up signs in stores advising that “in the approximate period between January 2015 and March 2016 the Stonemill Oregano and Stonemill Mixed Herbs did not meet Aldi’s product specifications”, and requesting that customers return the products for a full refund.

Hoyt’s told us that it was co-operating with the ACCC investigation. At the time of publication we hadn’t received a response from any of the other companies affected.

What’s the motivation for adulteration?

Someone, somewhere along the oregano supply chain, has made a conscious decision to substitute other leaves for oregano – but without more information, we can only speculate as to why.

In a recently reported case of saffron fraud, lower quality products were passed off as a premium product for financial gain, for example.

Food products may also be adulterated to ensure that supply meets demand. Suppliers usually have a commitment to provide a certain quantity of product. If there is more demand for a product than expected, or if supply is affected due to crop failure, for example, suppliers may have to try to source the product from elsewhere, which may not be possible.

According to our UK sister organisation Which?, when reporting on oregano fraud in that country, herbs have been identified as “vulnerable to food fraud as the rising demand for the product doesn’t quite tally up with what we know the agricultural supply can provide. It’s also chopped up or ground which makes it harder to identify by sight”.

How food fraud affects consumers

There’s an obvious cost implication for consumers when purchasing adulterated products, in that we’re usually paying for an inferior product. Consumers spent $115m on herbs and spices last year according to Retail World Annual Report 2015. And dried oregano is a staple in the spice rack of many Australians. It’s important that we get what we’re paying for.

But consumer detriment isn’t just limited to being ripped off on quality and value. There are potential safety issues associated with the adulteration and fraudulent labelling of products, as highlighted by the incidents of cumin adulteration in the US in the past 18 months – although hopefully there’s no safety risk to consumers from the adulteration of oregano.

Reducing the number of steps from farm to fork by buying direct from the producer (or growing your own) is one way to be sure you’re getting an authentic product, but this isn’t an option for most people. And you shouldn’t need a lab test to tell you what herb you’re actually buying. Consumers should be able to trust that if a product is labelled as ‘oregano’, it is in fact ‘oregano’.

ÌÇÐÄVlog verdict

Consumers need to have confidence in food labels – it’s simply not acceptable to be in the dark about what we’re adding to our food. At the end of the day all entities along the supply chain are responsible for the authenticity and traceability of the product being sold to consumers.

ÌÇÐÄVlog would like to see retailers, suppliers, producers and enforcement agencies increase and improve checks to ensure that all oregano products – and indeed all packaged herbs and spices – are what they say they are on the label.

Food fraud worldwide

Fraudulent labelling of saffron was exposed earlier this year after scientists analysed 44 commercial saffron products sold in Spain, the Czech Republic and Turkey and found that over 50% of the samples labelled as ‘Spanish saffron’ were neither grown nor processed in Spain. Saffron from Spain is internationally acknowledged for its superior quality, and the economic motivation for buying lower quality, cheaper saffron from other countries and passing it off as Spanish is significant.

In 2013 Europe was rocked by the discovery of horsemeat in foods advertised to be beef. The scandal resulted in a series of product recalls and prosecutions, and the establishment of a National Food Crime Unit in the UK.

Also in 2013, an American cheese company was found by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the US food safety regulator, to have adulterated its parmesan and romano cheese products. These products contained a mixture of trimmings of various cheeses and other ingredients, and the parmesan cheese products contained no parmesan cheese at all.

There have been multiple recalls of ground cumin in the US dating back to December 2014, with products testing positive for undeclared peanut. In some cases the quantity of peanut detected was small enough to assume accidental contamination was the cause, but in others the quantity was significant enough to suspect the substitution was economically motivated. The FDA advised that people who are highly allergic or sensitive to peanuts may be at risk of a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they came into contact with contaminated products.

Australia faced a similar issue last year with coconut drinks containing undeclared cows’ milk – a situation that resulted in one death and at least one recorded hospitalisation.

Clearly it’s crucial that consumers can trust that their food is what it says it is on the label.Ìý

Testing for adulteration

In August and September 2015, we bought 12 different dried oregano products. A sample from a single batch of each product was tested for oregano adulteration using Fourier TransformÌýInfrared (FT-IR)Ìýspectroscopy and chemometric modelling.

The products tested were a mixture of major brands sold in supermarkets and smaller brands sold through independent delis and grocers in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. The brands of oregano we tested represent more than 80% of the brand share (value) in the herbs and spices product category, according to Retail World. They were:

• Coles Oregano Leaves
• G Fresh Oregano Leaves “Mediterranean”
• Herbie’s Spices Oregano Leaves
• Hoyt’s Oregano Leaves Rubbed
• Master of Spices Oregano Leaves
• MasterFoods Oregano Leaves
• McCormick Oregano Leaves
• Menora Oregano
• Spencers Oregano
• Spice & Co. Oregano Leaves
• Stonemill (Aldi) Oregano
• Woolworths Select Oregano Leaves

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