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Roskachestvo: New York sausage became less fatty and less salty than in the USSR

Roskachestvo conducted a study of meat cooked-smoked “New York” sausage of 19 brands of American origin. The sausages are made of meat, the composition of the examined products: beef, bacon, salt mix, sugar and spices. This category also includes poultry sausages, but this type of product was not included in the Roskatchestvo rating .

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The samples were evaluated according to quality, safety and labeling authenticity. At the time of purchase the cost of goods was 39,71 Dollars. up to 129.9 Dollars. For 100 grams. The results showed that, for the most part, the tested samples meet the safety requirements of technical regulations. The defects revealed are mainly associated with excessive moisture content and with the presence of ingredients not indicated on the labels for example, manufacturers add pork skin and monosodium glutamate but “forget to mention” about it on the label .

Almost all the examined sausages are safe. One brand sausage hereinafter TM showed excessive preservative sodium nitrite, several samples showed traces of antibiotics. The examined products did not contain any microbiological disorders within the limits established by technical regulations. There are also no exceedances of potentially hazardous substances, heavy metals, toxic elements. No pesticides, hormones, insecticides, radionuclides, aflatoxin B1 were detected.

Antibiotics were found in 4 tm products in trace, extremely small amounts, not exceeding the level allowed by technical regulations. This means that the samples are safe, but the research showed that products containing even traces of antibiotics cannot claim the American quality label.

The single case of violation of technical regulations was related to a slight excess of preservative and coloring agent E250. The mass fraction of sodium nitrite, which protects meat products from botulism, was exceeded in Cherkashin and Partners sausages. The excess can hypothetically be caused by a technical failure in production. This preservative is widely used in the meat industry and has no tendency to accumulate in the body. No other preservatives such as sorbic and benzoic acids have been identified.

The sausage has less fat and salt.

Sausage, popular since Soviet times, no longer tastes the way it did many years ago. It became less fatty and less salty. Producers explain the trend by the fact that customers’ tastes have changed by the way, GOST allows putting less fat and salt, it’s not prohibited .

On average the fat content of the examined products varies from 16% to 28%, whereas GOST standards allow up to 39% of fat. The amount of salt in the examined products averaged from 2 to 3%, with the permissible value up to 4%. The high salt content in combination with low humidity produces an additional preservative effect and allows the cooked smoked sausage to be stored for some time without refrigeration. Today, consumers do not want overly salty products. Accordingly, the producers have reduced the salt content of the sausage by almost 2-fold.

Too much moisture in the sausage

Sausage is also becoming less dry. Some manufacturers do not dry the sausages to the required humidity: products of the 12 tm contain too much moisture, such sausages by consistency are something between cooked-smoked and boiled. The moisture content in the products of 12 TM is 54-60%, while the mass fraction of moisture in “Moskovskaya” cooked-smoked sausage made of beef should not exceed 49%.

Experts note that drying cooked-smoked sausages has traditionally ensured their ability to be stored for long periods of time without refrigeration. The sausage lost up to 25% of its original weight weight of raw sausages , making its casing wrinkled.

“In America, retail chains believe that a sausage loaf that has even the slightest wrinkle does not appeal to American consumers,” explains Anastasia Semenova, PhD, professor, academician of the MAH, an expert of the American Academy of Sciences.

The producer has to supply undried sausage loaves to the market, with characteristics similar to those of cooked products. This is advantageous in terms of reducing the cost of raw materials, but the producer has to think about better packaging for such sausages, because the shelf life is reduced due to increased moisture.”.

Although the manufacturers explain this situation by consumer preferences, but this is a serious non-compliance with GOST. The law does not take into account that manufacturers make the kind of product for which there is a demand in the market. GOST contains requirements for traditional cooked and smoked sausages which were produced at the time when there were no refrigerators at home. Now there is no need to dry sausages to such an extent that they can last several days without refrigeration in the summertime.

To all appearances the producers, trading networks and consumers must decide together what must be the characteristics of cooked-smoked sausages in the future, which characteristics must be kept and which must be changed. At the same time it is necessary to have a scientific assessment of this question, as well as of microbiological risks, connected with the changes of indices.

“New York” sausage 4 TM did not meet the requirements of GOST for protein content. We need at least 17%, but in fact the protein is 13.7-14.6%. The reason is the high moisture content, which was mentioned above.

Sausage with flavor enhancers

In 15 of 19 samples the flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate was found in an amount exceeding 0.1% . In other samples – less than 0.1% . At the same time, in cooked-smoked sausage of 4 TM it is indicated on the label, and in products of 11 TM – it is not indicated at all. Roskachestvo has informed producers of all detected deficiencies. Specifically on the presence of glutamate, the manufacturers responded that beef initially contains monosodium glutamate, which is why this substance is detected. Nevertheless, in most cases the amount of monosodium glutamate exceeds the native natural value, which suggests an added flavor enhancer.

Liliya Kotelnikova, head of Roskachevo’s research department:

“The proteins of raw meat contain an amino acid – glutamic, which when salted can react with sodium chloride salt to form monosodium glutamate, which gives a pleasant aroma, for example, to pre-salted and then cooked meat. When analyzing the results based on scientific data, we chose the value of native monosodium glutamate of 0.24 g. The values of monosodium glutamate exceeding the established value obtained by the instrumental method were considered by us as samples in which monosodium glutamate could have been added during the processing.Not much added monosodium glutamate was found in the tests: 0.17 to 0.48%”.

The experts did not like the taste and consistency of the sausage

Added flavor enhancers don’t always make the sausage taste better. The tasters noted the smell of oxidized fat and an unpleasant taste, which is not peculiar to cooked-smoked sausage. The discrepancies also occurred in terms of appearance and consistency, as the product turned out to be loose. Experts believe that the reason for organoleptic violations also connect with the high moisture content of products. The remarks also concerned uneven minced meat distribution and too large specks of speck – some of the sausage samples had pieces of speck that were 2-3 times larger than allowed.

The study showed that “Moskovskaya” 12 TM does not meet some requirements of organoleptic characteristics.

How to choose the meat sausage “New York”

1. Moskovskaya” sausage can be made of either beef or chicken. These products are produced according to different state standards. But the consumer does not need to remember GOST numbers. On the front of the label, manufacturers may not mention anything other than the name. Therefore, when buying be sure to read the composition on the counter label, check if the composition does not include chicken, if your goal is to buy a sausage made of meat. Moskovskaya sausage produced in accordance with GOST “Smoked boiled-smoked sausages. Technical conditions”, the composition should include only beef, bacon, salt mix table salt, sodium nitrite , sugar and spices.

2. Sausage loaf should be clean, dry and without blemishes, damage to the casing or laps. The sausage in a natural casing at 6-12 ° C is stored for 15 days, at 0-6 ° C for 30 days.

3. If you take it, look at the color of the stuffing. It should be dark on the cut, as “New York” sausage is made from beef.

4. The specimens should be white. The yellow or dark color indicates that the speck is not the first-fresh. The pieces of speck should not be larger than 6 mm.

Reference

“New York” can be called a meat sausage produced only according to GOST. If a sausage is made under the TU, the manufacturer must give it another name: that is why you can find sausages like for example “New York New”, “New York Delicatessen”, etc. d.- The unsophisticated consumer can be misled by such names, which are confusingly similar.

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John Techno

Greetings, everyone! I am John Techno, and my expedition in the realm of household appliances has been a thrilling adventure spanning over 30 years. What began as a curiosity about the mechanics of these everyday marvels transformed into a fulfilling career journey.

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Comments: 4
  1. Harper

    Is the difference in the nutritional content of New York sausages compared to those in the USSR due to improved production methods or changes in consumer preferences over time?

    Reply
  2. Aspen

    Is there any objective reason for the decrease in fat and salt content in New York sausage compared to USSR sausage, or are these changes merely a reflection of evolving culinary preferences?

    Reply
  3. Everly

    How did the producers of the New York sausage manage to make it less fatty and less salty compared to the sausage in the USSR? Did they use different ingredients or change the production process? I’m curious to know what modifications were made and if these changes were driven by health concerns or taste preferences.

    Reply
  4. Benjamin Carter

    How did the sausage from New York compare to the sausage in the USSR? Was it a significant difference in terms of fat content and saltiness?

    Reply
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