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Private Notes
It is a truism that without a calf there is no milk. Milk that the farmer wants to be able to sell. That is why he usually separates the mother cow and calf soon after birth. This way, the milk can be sent to the factory and will not be drunk by the young calf. But recently there were new milk cartons on the supermarket shelves. Milk from cows where the calf can stay with its mother longer. De Keuringsdienst visits the milkman to see with his own eyes the difference between these two methods of farming.
It sounds like a holiday and is located between the meats: Iberico. Exclusive Spanish ham from exceptional pigs with an eccentric taste. But small letters say something strange: Iberico is only fifty percent Iberico. What's up with that? De Keuringsdienst about pigs from far away.
De Keuringsdienst once did some bulk shopping on the internet and came across something strange. Frozen chicken fillet, especially for the catering industry, which only consists of 70% chicken. The rest is water. Why? And how they do it, de Keuringsdienst wants to know and is almost drowning in the world of the water chicken.
Cow, pig, sheep: we usually know which animal is on our plate. But crawl into its skin, or sit on it, and you have to guess at its species. Jackets and bags. Shoes and chairs. Purses and slippers. Genuine leather, just says it. But which animal? An educational episode from De Keuringsdienst.
Piripiri, it's on the chicken and in the fillet. There are spices and there are sauces. Practically every product is for sale in a piripiri edition, but no one actually knows what it is or what it represents. Let alone why piripiri is only piripiri if it is double printed. A spicy episode from De Keuringsdienst.
Cheese also opted for convenience: with plastic packets of cheese slices. Pre-sliced cheese, which does not require the use of a slicer, directly on the sandwich. But how is it possible: all those slices are exactly the same size and length? De Keuringsdienst will look for the clever cheesehead who can explain it to us.
Butter, cheese and milk: the Netherlands is the world champion in this. Good for billions of liters of dairy every year, for which millions of calves are brought into the world every year. Some become cash cows themselves, but many end up as meat. De Keuringsdienst wants to know how it is doing and follows the calves from the farm to the end.
You either have glamor or you don't. You can buy glitter. Beautiful store shelves contain thousands of varieties. From lipstick to craft glue. Markers to make-up. Good for all your parties and celebrations. But what is it? De Keuringsdienst follows the glittering trail with radiance and discovers with flying colors that even glitter is a beautiful appearance.
Neat bunches of flowers must go: home magazines recommend wild, lush forests. Field bouquets. Odes to nature, full of colorful seasonal flowers, right on your kitchen table. A vase full, fresh from the field. But from which field were these bunches actually picked? De Keuringsdienst looks for the flowers outside and discovers that a field bouquet requires a lot of imagination.
He has the Netherlands in his grasp: the octopus. Previously only available at the fishmonger, but now even available in supermarkets. Pulpo is on it: pre-cooked tentacles, including suction cups. But what happened to the rest of the beast? De Keuringsdienst asks the main question and searches for the head of the octopus.
Every animal has a name, but one only gets it once it is dead: sliptong. If it swims in the sea, it is a small sole. If there are three of them on your plate at a time, they put slip in front of them. But no one knows why. Sliptong is said to be baby sole, fished from a disturbed seabed. The Inspection Service wants to know how that works.
Plastic junk: the world's oceans would choke with it. Fortunately, they have come up with a solution: ocean plastic. New stuff made from old plastic, fished straight from the sea. From sports clothes to toys, mugs to mice. We are inundated with stuff made from ocean plastic. Buy the seas clean with a clear conscience. But is it really that simple?
Sausage, ham, salami or bacon: before pork became meat, it went through life as an animal. And animals can also get sick. At the largest slaughterhouse in our country, which mainly processes pigs from large stables, it appears that one in four healthy slaughtered pigs has suffered something. Damaged pleura is at the top at 17%. But what does this all mean?
It is the nature of the potato: you can use it in many ways. From baking to mashing, roasting to cooking. Too complex, the supermarkets thought, and now they make it clear which tuber you should buy for which trick. But what kind of potatoes are those? Thorough investigation, by the Inspection Service.
It is particularly strange: for years it has been a bumblebee lesson with bumblebees, bees and flowers. The pollinating creatures are threatened. A tragedy for everything that grows and flourishes. But how is it possible that there is no sign of this at the greengrocer? Shelves still shine with abundance. The Inspection Service cannot wrap its head around it and investigates.
Wheat, water, yeast and salt: bread has been a very simple recipe for thousands of years. But now they started playing with that bread. They add things that are much needed. Field bean flour, for example. But why? Even the baker himself has to guess at the answer. The Inspection Service follows the road to fields full of field beans and asks what they want in our daily bread.
It is given away for free by creation: her. But more and more people think that is not enough. And so they are going over the counter in droves: hair extensions. In all shapes and sizes. 'Real hair' is what it says on the packaging. But whose locks are weeded from? A perfect question for the Inspection Service.
Fish sauce: sauce, not necessarily for the fish, but made from it. The only question is how. From light to dark brown: many bottles can be found on the wok shelf. All filled with crystal clear fluid, with no trace of fish missing. The Inspection Service about how they do the job of turning whole fish into ready-made sauce.
Water, barley and hops: a beer. Simple enough, you might say. But nothing turns out to be further from the truth. While the ingredients vary widely, there is not a bottle, can or keg that does not state that it has been brewed according to a 'traditional recipe'. How is that possible? The Inspection Service about lager, traditions and nonsense.
Our little country has them in abundance: frogs. They have been seen a lot along the ditch side, but also on our plate. At the Chinese takeaway or in the French bistro. But where do the served buttocks come from? The Inspection Service delves into the world of the frog and finds out how this bizarre industry works.
From diapers to chocolate milk, juices to meat substitutes, a complete bunch of products with one thing in common. It contains E460. Or also: cellulose. Tree it would be. But is it bark, sawdust or chipboard? And more importantly: What do dead trees actually do in our shopping basket? The Inspection Service doesn't understand it and starts looking for the forest that ends up in our food.
There is a strange story about pregnant horses. The horses' blood is said to contain something that makes other animals more fertile. An unlikely, bloody rumor. Or not? The Inspection Service follows the trail of blood and marvels at an industry that few people have ever heard of.
The green bean. An everyday staple and the epitome of traditional Dutch cuisine. For more chic occasions we use the haricot vert. But what exactly is the difference between the two green beans? The Inspection Service will find out.
There are butchers and there are the Keurslager. But what does the big K of the Keurslager actually stand for? The Inspection Service of Waarde about the butcher who inspects his own meat.
