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Private Notes
The prospect of having drinks again on Friday keeps many people awake during the week. But don't come to those drinks with ordinary snacks. Nowadays it is tapas that counts.
There is no French cheese that the Dutch have eaten as much as brie. The regular guest on the drinks and cheese board has even been given a permanent place in our basic sandwich spread package. But the Inspection Service noticed something: one brie is not the same as the other. There is round brie and square. Brie with an odor and brie without an odor. There is cream brie and 'normal' brie. From cow and goat. But when is brie actually brie? And when not? We visit the source of all brie and find out that the Dutch treat the cheese with the French twist.
If you cook Thai, you grab a pack of pandan from the shelf. Particularly fragrant rice from South-East Asia. More expensive than regular white rice, because pandan tastes like pandan plants. Still, the question arises: what exactly is pandan rice? Because in addition to pandan, all the packages also mention jasmine. A name that appears to be more popular at the store. We travel to Thailand for pandan rice and are disappointed.
We were finally allowed to go on holiday again, but the Inspection Service almost stayed home. Because a long-distance pleasure trip may be fun, but it would do the world little good. The earth is becoming too hot, the environment is under heavy strain and the paths are being trampled. Fortunately, holiday sellers have found a solution: sustainable holidays. Without and with airplane. From safaris in Africa to all-inclusives in Turkey. Not only far, but also fair. But how do they actually do that: make your holiday eco?
Bring the tropics into your home, make something with coconut. Long known for its curry, it is now a treat for vegans. Because with a coconut you can go in any direction. From yoghurt to butter. Shampoo to spread. All without animal suffering. However? The Inspection Service took a look at a can of coconut milk and saw something that made the ears pop. It really says it: no monkey labor. Monkey labor? In your coconut milk? And all those other coconut things? The Inspection Service about monkey tricks in the coconut industry.
In the past, supermarkets barely cared about the state of the world. The environment hardly bothered them. The farmer was given the money. Not to mention animal suffering. But fortunately that misery is finally behind us. The country's largest wholesaler is making a big deal with a historic turnaround. 'Better for', Albert Heijn now puts on countless products. From vegetables and fruit, to pork, cow and chicken. With 'Better for', the supermarket promises improvement for just about everything and everyone. But better than what? And why not just the best for it?
Once upon a time they only swam in the sea: large shrimps. Now they are grown for consumption in places far away. And the Inspection Service heard a strange story about that cultivation. The mother shrimp's eye would be cut off. That would somehow stimulate reproduction. A seemingly unlikely rumor, or not? The Inspection Service about how the shrimp industry boosts birth rates in an unorthodox way.
Man just makes a mess of it. And so we scrub and scrub ourselves silly every day. From small loads to large loads, the dishes to the toilet bowl. And the wonderful thing is that it can now all be done with a radiantly clean conscience. Because the shelves are full of them: cleaning products that claim to be ecological. Green and supposedly inspired by nature. But how ecological are all those ecological resources actually? The Inspection Service of Value about how green cleaning products are playing tricks on us.
Bring the sun into your home with sun-dried tomatoes. From salads to tapenades, pizzas to pasta: every dish can be made with it in the summer. Good also for that Italian touch. But how do they actually do that, fry hundreds of millions of tomatoes open and brown? Because when is it too hot? And when too cold? Not to mention rain. The Inspection Service of Value prepares itself well for a search for Italian sun-dried tomatoes and, strangely enough, ends up in Turkey.
The panda likes it and humans have recently started spinning yarn with it: bamboo. Whether it is a romper or underwear, fashion made from bamboo is said to be extremely special. Buttery soft, protective and, above all, extremely durable. Because bamboo shoots to heaven even faster than beanpole. Nice, but how do they actually do it: spin such silky soft fabrics from rock-hard bamboo? The Inspection Service is biting into bamboo textiles and comes across a story that you won't be left out in the cold.
As soon as the weather is dark, cold and chilly, he is always brought out of the stable: Rookworst. The 'just act normal, then you're acting crazy enough' incarnate. Dead simple and quintessentially Dutch. But now the incarnate is also starting to become complicated. In addition to vacuum-packed, fresh products are also available in supermarkets. Cold from the refrigerator, sometimes even without a bag. The Value Inspection Service wants to know what they actually mean by fresh. Because rookworst is smoked, so it is no longer fresh?
Of all the shellfish we eat, none is as cherished as the oyster. Standard on the menu at an additional cost. Good for good decoration. Whether it is called Zeeland creuse or Zeeland flat, Fines de Claire or Gillardeau: you can brag about the oyster. But how is it possible that they are always there? It is known that you only eat mussels when the R is in the month, but oysters are always on the menu. The Inspection Service of Value about how people ensure that oysters can also be ordered out of season.
Even pale meat products cannot escape the fad. Suddenly many pre-packed slices of chicken, ham and bacon have been put in trendy brown jackets. Fresh off the grill, it says on one. Other packages mention oven-baked or roasted. And some even have multiple preparations mixed together. But what is the difference between grilling, baking and roasting? And do any of those methods even come into play with these meat products? Inspection Service Van Waarde about how meat products reach their limits.
Wine was once a simple grape drink. Then people started making things complicated. And now there is something new again: wine as the simplest drink it once was. Natural wine is on nice labels. Tough sommeliers swear by it. Stubborn liquor stores cannot get hold of the bottles. Because natural wine would be pure wine. With as little human interference as possible. Wine, straight from nature. But when is wine natural and when is it not? The value inspection service takes a dip in natural grape juice and comes home with a hangover.
Ask for North Sea crab in a fish shop or restaurant and you often only get a few legs. Defused claws, once part of a spry crab. It is said to be the easiest part of the crustacean to eat. But where did the rest of the beast actually go? The carcass of a crab is never for sale separately in the fish shop. The Value Inspection Service is scratching its head, scouring the North Sea and discovering that the crab is in serious trouble as soon as it comes into human hands.
Soups, sauces and stews: they only deserve a wreath as soon as laurel is added. Warm and woody, that's how chefs describe the taste. But it may cost something. Sometimes even eight hundred euros per kilo. You can buy whole bay plants for next to nothing. Reap your riches. The Inspection Service wants to know how it is possible that bay leaf in a bag is very expensive. Could it be because some bags say that the leaves have been selected by hand? A tasty story about golden hands in laurel picking.
