Sojadrinks About every third drink is deficient, according to Stiftung Warentest

Sojadrinks: Stiftung Warentest rated every third product as "deficient"

Herbal alternatives to cow's milk have been experiencing a boom for years. Especially soy products are often used. Stiftung Warentest has now taken a closer look at 15 soy drinks. Every third of them through the test a lot.

Alternatives to cow's milk

Some people rely on herbal milk alternatives, because they want to feed as possible without animal products. Others are more likely to have health issues or intolerances such as lactose intolerance. Soy milk is considered a highly recommended alternative to cow's milk. But not all soy drinks are good, as a study by Stiftung Warentest showed.

Seven out of 15 tested soy drinks were found to be "good" by Stiftung Warentest. However, five were "defective" because they found a germ or higher amounts of nickel and chlorate. (Image: BillionPhotos.com/fotolia.com)

Soy drinks of nature taste tested

"Soy drinks are the number one of the milk alternatives and are considered healthy," writes Stiftung Warentest in a press release.

But some of these drinks contain harmful substances or germs that can harm your health.

This was reflected in a study by Stiftung Warentest. The testers tested 15 flavored natural soy drinks with and without calcium fortification, including well-known brands such as Alnatura, Alpro and dm. Twelve of them were bio-labeled.

Almost every second soy drink did well. But every third one was defective.

Very heavily loaded with nickel

As the testers write on their website, a glass of soy drink provides almost as much protein as whole milk.

But: "The super-image of the bean is scratched," it says in the review. Six of the soya drinks, all with organic labels, were heavily or very heavily loaded with nickel.

As the experts explain, it has been shown in animal experiments that high nickel consumption damages the reproductive ability and can lead to eczema in highly sensitized people.

According to the information, nickel finds usually have a natural origin: the soybean plant picks up the heavy metal from the ground and stores it.

However, it can also get into food via production processes and air pollution. The test showed that the bio-seal does not protect against high levels of pollution: All very strong nickel-containing soya drinks had one.

Chlorate was also a problem. It appeared in questionable amounts in a soy drink from the Asian market.

According to the testers, contamination with chlorate may have occurred during the production process.

A drink was inedible

The organic soy drink calcium by dm turned out to be inedible. Cause was the very high load with the germ cellulosimicrobium cellulans, which could lead to discomfort in sensitive intestines.

The testers advise against consumption. Stiftung Warentest informed the provider about the find during the test phase. dm took the affected batch out of the sale in April 2018.

Good in taste and full of valuable nutrients

A total of seven of the 15 soy drinks in the test are a good choice. They contain no questionable amounts of pollutants, are good in flavor and provide valuable nutrients. They cost between 95 cents and 2.34 euros per liter.

The exact test results can be downloaded for a fee from the Stiftung Warentest website.

But so much is revealed: test winner has become the "organic soy drink" by Berief for 1.29 euros per liter. And the cheapest "good" soy drink comes from the discounter Lidl (0.95 euros). (Ad)