Lower quality meat sold more often: watchdog

By Demid Getik on May 5, 2015 - 15:50
The Albert Heijn to Go convenience store at Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA station is one over 930 stores across the Netherlands (TahR78/Wikimedia Commons) . (The Albert Heijn to Go convenience store at Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA station is one over 930 stores across the Netherlands (TahR78/Wikimedia Commons) )

Grocery stores are selling more cheap meat of lower quality than a year ago, finds supermarket monitoring organization Wakker Dier. They called the trend surprising, since in January the parliament voted against selling extraordinarily cheap meat in stores.

Wakker Dier argues that selling cheaper meat goes at the expense of public health, animal welfare and local farmers. The organization labels meat sold for less than 4.12 euro per kilo, the average cat food price, as “kiloknallers,” a term used to define a discount product stunt.

The total number of such offers rose to 113 from 96 a year earlier. The organization analyzes supermarket deals through brochures and websites of larger supermarket chains. Smaller grocers not included into the statistics seem to show a similar trend with their meat supply.

“The rhetoric about sustainability, animal welfare and the environment on website and in yearly reports is offset by the actual policy,” writes the organization in its report. Wakker Dier is planning a campaign against “meat discounters” this summer.

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