The ‘democratization’ of smoked salmon, which is ubiquitous now, has been followed by the refrigerated counter offerings of smoked, pre-sliced and packaged tuna and swordfish. The presentation of these products-with ample deployment of various materials ( multi-layer cardboard trays, vacuum-packed plastic bags, cardboard cases)-is linked to gourmet prices.
Under the case, however, there is no shortage of surprises. Excess salt and the presence of additives in some products on the market may betray suboptimal quality. With the suspicion that the raw materials used in ‘first price’ products may also be those intended exclusively for the canning industry and not also for this type of preparation. (1)
Our small market survey covers 9 products made and sold in Italy, in the mid-to-high price segment. The selection includes the brands Fish&Fine, Fior Fiore Coop, Good Mediterranean Flavors, Sicily Food, Riunione Top Quality, taken over in August 2021 at Carrefour, Ekom, EasyCoop, Everli, and Eataly. On the occasion, the ABCs of decoding the labels of this product category.
Smoked tuna and swordfish, the ABCs of decoding labels
Labeling of semi-preserved smoked tuna and swordfish is generally meager. In fact, only some labels specify, on a voluntary basis, the processing techniques adopted.
Beyond more or less suggestive appearances and self-references, it is always useful to focus on the mandatory information. And learn how to decode them, to understand the true quality of products.
A) Ingredient list
The basic ingredients of smoked (and sliced) tuna and swordfish in the examined sample are always the same:
– fish (tuna or swordfish),
– sugar,
– salt,
– Wood smoke, smoking.
Added in some cases are flavorings-which are synthetic, where it is not specified to be ‘natural flavorings’-and inoffensive spices. The presence of flavorings is also a significant detail for smoking, as we will see later.
In only one case – in the Riunione Top quality tuna – two ‘antioxidants’ also appear among the products examined. Sodium ascorbate (E301)-considered risk-free-and sodium citrate (E331), a salt of citric acid about which some suspicions loom. (2)
B) Nutritional profiles
Tuna and swordfish-like most fish products-provide protein and omega-3 fatty acids in appreciable quantity and quality. (3) However, the benefits associated with their intake risk being counteracted by a more or less excessive salt content, which unbalances the nutritional profile of the food.
The daily intake of salt recommended by WHO, remember, is less than 5 grams. And its excess causes cardiovascular disease, diabetes and other serious illnesses. But a single portion of some of the products under consideration, as the table shows, even exceeds half the daily threshold.
In fact, the sample of references examined contained 2.5 to 2.9 g of salt in tuna, 2.59 to 3.8 g of salt in swordfish.
C) Fishing tools
Fishing gear is another element that distinguishes the quality as well as the sustainability of the products:
Only the tuna produced by Sicily Food for Eataly in the sample under review is caught with hook and line. Coop’s Fior Fiore, while endorsed by the association ‘On the side of the dolphins,’ is caught with purse seine nets, the other three with encircling nets and gathering nets.
On the other hand, the swordfish examined was always from hook-and-line fishing, if Coop even refers to fixed lines.
The difference is substantial, since:
– purse seines are a primary cause of the depletion of planetary fish stocks, as shared, (1)
– fishing vessels using purse seines are almost entirely lacking refrigeration facilities suitable for freezing. (4)
Salting by hand or injection
Salting is one of the oldest fish preservation techniques. In fact, salt accelerates water loss, thus increasing the shelf life of the food. Salting can take place
– dry
– by hand
– By injections of brine (water and salt).
Salting technique is not among the mandatory information on the label. Only Fish&Fine and Fior Fiore Coop products-in both references, tuna and swordfish-report ‘hand’ and ‘dry’ salting. In other cases, the use of the cheaper brine injection is inferred.
Smoking, various techniques
Natural smoking is done slowly, according to tradition, with beech wood. The cheaper alternative is twofold, quick smoking and/or addition of liquid smoke, a natural flavoring that mimics the taste.
The use of flavoring is ‘revealed’ in the ingredient list by the presence of the terms ‘flavoring’ or ‘smoke’.
Coop’s only Fior Fiore tuna indicates‘slow smokingwith beech wood smoke‘. In swordfish on the other hand, both Coop’s Fior Fiore and Sicily Food (for Eataly) specify that the fish is smoked‘slowly, with smoke frombeech wood‘ and‘with beech wood‘ respectively.
In other cases, the use of smoke aroma (liquid smoke) is assumed. Also in Good Mediterranean Flavors products, where the ingredient list indicates ‘flavorings‘ as well as‘natural smoking with beech wood.’
Marta Strinati and Dario Dongo
Notes
(1) Dario Dongo. Fraud on thawed tuna, brief advice pending in Brussels. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 8/31/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/frodi-sul-tonno-decongelato-brevi-consigli-in-attesa-di-bruxelles
(2) Marta Strinati. Non-alcoholic aperitifs, our test of 11 products. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) 6.8.21 https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/aperitivi-analcolici-il-nostro-test-su-11-prodotti
(3) Dario Dongo, Andrea Adelmo Della Penna. Omega-3 and cardiovascular disease prevention. Mayo Clinic meta-analysis. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 3.2.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/omega-3-e-prevenzione-delle-malattie-cardiovascolari-meta-analisi-di-mayo-clinic
(4) The fish thus harvested, kept in brine at -9 °C, must come exclusively for the canning industry, not also for the productions under consideration. See footnote 1
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
