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Stiftung Warentest Mercury and mineral oils in all tuna varieties
Stiftung Warentest's food inspectors had tested 16 tuna canned foods in oil and 4 frozen steaks for various pollutants. 18 products received the grade "good" or "satisfactory". Of particular concern is the content of mercury.
No sample was free of pollutants. However, mercury levels were below the EU limit of 1 milligram per kilogram of tuna. Other fish may contain up to half, but this threshold was exceeded by any product. In two cans of organic-grade oil, however, the testers found critical mineral oil concentrations that could have come from contaminated edible oils or during the processing process into the product. There was no danger to health.
20 tuna products tested
Tuna is extremely popular among the German citizens. After Alaska salmon, herring and salmon it is the best-selling food fish in Germany. Stiftung Warentest has now subjected 20 tuna products to a pollutant check, including canned tuna in oil and frozen steaks ("test", 9/16). The results do not make you hungry for the fish.
Stiftung Warentest has examined 20 tuna products and found them in all pollutants. Especially the mercury finds are terrifying. (Image: HandmadePictures / fotolia.com) No product received "very good"
"Tuna fish swarm through the warm and temperate zones of all oceans. The predators can pick up a lot of toxic mercury from captured fish - it first accumulates in plankton, then in plankton-eating fish, "write the testers on their website. And indeed they found what they were looking for.
Not a single product received the rating "very good". The test showed that all fish products contained pollutants, especially mercury. "Too much mercury can damage the nervous system, especially in the unborn," the experts write. Experts therefore recommend again and again: Pregnant women should not eat tuna. The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) also advises pregnant women and nursing mothers to "limit the consumption of tuna as a precautionary measure".
Mercury is one of the most dangerous pollutants
Mercury is one of the six most dangerous pollutants listed in last year's toxic report of the Swiss environmental organization Green Cross and organization Pure Earth from New York. The heavy metal can cause damage to the brain education of unborn children and infants.
And in adults, mercury poisoning can cause kidney, liver and nerve damage, among other things. In addition, the toxic heavy metal is suspected to increase the risk of heart attack and Alzheimer's disease. An increased cancer risk from mercury is also assumed.
Mercury limit values for food fish
In the European Union, for large predatory fish such as tuna, a limit of one milligram per kilogram is required for mercury. Other fish species may contain up to half as much mercury. The values are controversial anyway. The consumer protection organization Foodwatch had sharply criticized the planned increase in the mercury limits for tuna and co.
Mineral oils from contaminated edible oils
All 20 products tested by the foundation were below the limit. In comparison, the products of Followfisch, Deutsche See and Rewe received the largest share of mercury, but according to the testers, even pregnant women and nursing mothers could eat these and all other products of the test choice.
However, the Stiftung Warentest examined the fish for other critical pollutants and found it to be "with mineral oils that can get into products from contaminated edible oils or from the processing process. Some mineral compounds can accumulate permanently in the human body, others may be carcinogenic, "it says in their report.
Also bioproducts burdened
Also Biofisch is not free from burdens. Critical concentrations of mineral oils have been found in "Fontaine" and "Pan do Mar" from the organic trade. The two branded products received only the grade "sufficient".
Test winner was the preserve of Aldi Süd / Armada "tuna fillets in sunflower oil". In second place was the can of Kaiser's / Tengelmann's own brand Starmarke Sorte "tuna fillets in sunflower oil". The tuna steak from Edeka made first place in the frozen food category. (Ad)