Eco test
Spaghetti all’olio minerale: Of all things, two organic noodles fail
The favorite pasta in the “Ökotest”: spaghetti
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Disappointment at “Ökotest”: Organic spaghetti has the highest mineral oil content, mold toxins and glyphosate. Well-known brands are recommended for this.
Worrying results “Eco test”: Of all things, two organic products attract negative attention. The organic spaghetti from Netto and Edeka performed poorly in “Ökotest”. What’s the matter? In the laboratory, the products contained highly elevated levels of saturated mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOSH/MOSH analogues), a class of substances that consists of petroleum components and can accumulate in human fatty tissue and organs. The finding was particularly worrying in the case of organic spaghetti from Edeka, whose content of these substances exceeded the reference value of the State Working Group for Consumer Protection (LAV) many times over.
In addition, increased levels of these mineral oil residues were found in six of 37 other products, including four organic pastas. This result is all the more surprising because pastas such as spaghetti are not normally contaminated at this level, which raises questions about the source of contamination. The subject of glyphosate, a controversial pesticide classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as probably carcinogenic, also came up in the test. This showed a slight improvement compared to previous studies, as traces of pesticides were only found in eight of the 37 products tested. Nevertheless, an organic own brand, K-Bio Spaghetti from Kaufland, contained detectable amounts of glyphosate.
Ökotest only recommends organic pasta to a limited extent
Interestingly, the new packaging methods, specifically the use of paper bags for organic spaghetti, were also scrutinized. A study by the Heidelberg Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (Ifeu) on behalf of the German Nature Conservation Association (Nabu) came to the conclusion that paper bags generate the lowest environmental impact compared to cardboard boxes and plastic bags and are therefore the most ecological packaging option.
Last but not least, a product was devalued because of the detection of mold toxins, especially HT-2 toxins, which can damage the immune system. It was Riesa’s organic spaghetti.
Overall, when you reach for organic pasta, it cannot be ruled out that it is contaminated with mineral oils, glyphosate and mold toxins. But don’t worry: Of course there were also test winners. For example, the organic spaghetti from Alnatura and DeCecco or the conventional pasta from Barilla and Birkel.