Sulphite surveys

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Beef mince is not allowed to contain any sulphite preservative by law, but Food Intolerance Network members were clearly reacting to sulphites in mince. So members fanned out with home test kits and we found that 43% of mince contained illegal sulphites. Food regulators pooh-poohed the method used and the results, then did their own survey: they found that 53% of sulphites contained illegal sulphites! Prosecutions followed and the situation has improved in Australia.

Beef mince is not allowed to contain ANY sulphites, by law.

In 2004, Food Intolerance Network members used sulphite test strips to test butcheries around Australia for the illegal presence of sulphites in minced beef.

While FIN has the names of the butcheries, samples were not taken under legal conditions and the test-strip method, while calibrated and corrected for blank readings, is not the recognised legal test method. Therefore the names of butcheries are not given in the table below but are supplied to regulatory authorities.

Tests are continuing. The results on 65 butcheries were:

• overall, 43% of mince in Australia, New Zealand and Sweden contained illegal sulphites at levels high enough to cause asthma.
• The ACT was the worst state by far.
• While small butcheries are the usual offenders, the highest results were actually from big butcheries in one supermarket chain and in non-imported meat in Sweden.
• Don't buy your mince on Fridays or weekends after the health inspectors have knocked off.

Detailed results on sulphite test strips – the Food Intolerance Network has been distributing these at cost within Australia, Sweden and New Zealand to allow people to test minced meat for the illegal presence of sulphites.  Of 65 results returned in the last year, 28 (43%) contained sulphites at >200ppm.  The legal limit is zero! The illegal results state-by-state are ACT 86% (of 7 samples, including equal highest in the survey at 640ppm), NSW 22% (of 23 samples), NT 33% (of 9 samples), NZ  67% (of 6 samples), QLD 50% (of 6 samples), SA 100% (1 sample only), TAS 0% (1 sample only), VIC 0% (3 samples only), WA 50% (of 6 samples) and in Sweden100% in non-imported meat including equal highest at 640ppm (3 samples only). While people are most likely to report positive rather than negative results to the Network, the illegal presence of these known causes of asthma is a real concern.  The detailed results will be provided to FSANZ again.

See letters to and from FSANZ regarding the illegal use of sulphites in mince.

TO BUY SULPHITE TEST-STRIPS FROM MERCK PTY LTD

In Australia, ring 1800 335 571 and ask for Customer Service.

Ask for Merck Sulphite Test Strips "Mercoquant 110013". They cost $70.00 plus GST plus $35 freight = $112.00 for 100 tests. Provide your credit card details over the phone plus a street delivery address. They are a stock item and should arrive within 5 working days.

TO GET SULPHITE TEST STRIPS FROM THE FOOD INTOLERANCE NETWORK

For just a few strips, post a stamped self-addressed envelope to Food Intolerance Network, PO Box 718, Woolgoolga NSW 2456 with two stamps extra for each test strip. We'll post back the strips and instructions. This is done at cost, not for profit.

DETAILS OF HOW TO USE THE TEST STRIPS

You have sulphite test-strips. Their active end, which you put into the meat and don't touch with your fingers, has a small white square on it. There is a colour scale on the outside of the in the plastic bag.

In addition, you will need the following, all rinsed and dried thoroughly between uses: Measuring teaspoon, Small glass tumbler, Small fork, Chilled water, Knife.

Buying the meat samples

Best to buy the samples fresh, keep cool and test as soon as you get home. Friday afternoon is a good time because those butchers who use sulphites illegally often wait until the inspectors are unlikely to call. Ask for 250g. Make sure that you label the bag with the date and name of the butcher so there can be no mix-ups.

Testing the meat sample.

1. Put two teaspoons of chilled water into the tumbler.
2. Slash open the plastic bag containing meat. Make a diagonal cut in it with a clean knife to expose the centre of the meat. Scoop out a teaspoon full from one end of the cut surface, level with the knife if needed, and drop into the tumbler. Repeat, taking the sample from the other end of the cut surface.
3. Thoroughly macerate the mince and chilled water with the fork so that it is a uniform sludge. This takes about 15 seconds to do properly.
4. Without touching the active end of the Sulphite test strip, dip the active end into the mince sludge for one second. Make sure that it is thoroughly wetted by wriggling it around.
5. Take out of the sludge, flick clean and time exactly 30 seconds. You can rinse briefly with cool water to get any meat off the active end.
6. Compare the colour of the active end with the colour scale supplied. Put the active end and the colour scale side by side and try the next higher and the next lower to be certain.
7. Write down the reading. Note that meat contains some sulphites anyway from the high level of protein, so some pink colour is expected.
8. Don't panic if you get 80ppm. The calculation is to take 80 from the reading and then multiply by 2. Therefore a reading of 80 is 0 ppm. A reading of 180ppm is 200ppm after correction. ppm means parts per million.
9. If you want to inform the Food Intolerance Network of your result, send the information below to confoodnet@ozemail.com.au

Date of last update: February 2009