1.8 Could Yerba Mate Be Associated with Food Frauds?
27
On these bases:
(1) The identification of the product may vary notably, including the mention of
artificial sweeteners, ‘simple aromatic herbs’, seasoned twigs, flavoured twigs.
Other mentions such as ‘green’, ‘digestive anti-acid’, ‘classic’, etc., can be
observed
(2) The mention of non-yerba mate ingredients can be omitted unless it does not
reach or surpass 25% of the total amount (on the other side, food additives
exploiting a technological function have to be declared)
(3) The use of a pictured country flag on labels may be observed, especially in
Brazil. Interestingly, Uruguayan enterprises are accustomed to import raw
materials; consequently, the Uruguay flag is not observed or reported at present.
The presence of undeclared or partially mentioned information on labels which
is not compliant with above-mentioned requirements in Argentina is a food fraud.
The above-mentioned lists can serve as a useful guide in this ambit. The topic is
discussed in detail in Chap. 8.
Finally, the following facts have to be highlighted:
(a) With relation to simple sugars addition, the product ‘yerba mate with saccharose’ is allowed in Brazil at least (Ministério da Saúde 2005). Naturally, this
quality should be considered as cheap enough if compared with real yerba
mate
(b) In addition, the amount of sugars in yerba mate has to decrease during
processing (blanching). Consequently, the addition of sugars aims at giving
back a part of sugars to the original plant, while the normal process operates
in the opposite direction with the augment of polyphenols and antioxidants
(Dartora et al. 2011)
(c) Moreover, simple sugars are easily fermentescible, with a theoretical risk in
terms of microbial spreading, increased moisture during time, and sanitary
damages for diabetics (because of the undeclared sugars presence and addition)
(d) The entering of low-quality yerba mate can destroy the whole market with a
general decrease of high-quality plants and leaves. The mass of small and fair
traders will necessarily decrease during time
(e) The addition of artificial colours is not reported so far. Actually, the colorimetric appearance of yerba mate should be a good reason for food adulteration.
Anyway, there are not evidences for similar practices so far
(f) Finally, the problem of controls on yerba mate is still linked to the lack of
accepted analytical methods, on the one hand, and the short shelf-life.
27
On these bases:
(1) The identification of the product may vary notably, including the mention of
artificial sweeteners, ‘simple aromatic herbs’, seasoned twigs, flavoured twigs.
Other mentions such as ‘green’, ‘digestive anti-acid’, ‘classic’, etc., can be
observed
(2) The mention of non-yerba mate ingredients can be omitted unless it does not
reach or surpass 25% of the total amount (on the other side, food additives
exploiting a technological function have to be declared)
(3) The use of a pictured country flag on labels may be observed, especially in
Brazil. Interestingly, Uruguayan enterprises are accustomed to import raw
materials; consequently, the Uruguay flag is not observed or reported at present.
The presence of undeclared or partially mentioned information on labels which
is not compliant with above-mentioned requirements in Argentina is a food fraud.
The above-mentioned lists can serve as a useful guide in this ambit. The topic is
discussed in detail in Chap. 8.
Finally, the following facts have to be highlighted:
(a) With relation to simple sugars addition, the product ‘yerba mate with saccharose’ is allowed in Brazil at least (Ministério da Saúde 2005). Naturally, this
quality should be considered as cheap enough if compared with real yerba
mate
(b) In addition, the amount of sugars in yerba mate has to decrease during
processing (blanching). Consequently, the addition of sugars aims at giving
back a part of sugars to the original plant, while the normal process operates
in the opposite direction with the augment of polyphenols and antioxidants
(Dartora et al. 2011)
(c) Moreover, simple sugars are easily fermentescible, with a theoretical risk in
terms of microbial spreading, increased moisture during time, and sanitary
damages for diabetics (because of the undeclared sugars presence and addition)
(d) The entering of low-quality yerba mate can destroy the whole market with a
general decrease of high-quality plants and leaves. The mass of small and fair
traders will necessarily decrease during time
(e) The addition of artificial colours is not reported so far. Actually, the colorimetric appearance of yerba mate should be a good reason for food adulteration.
Anyway, there are not evidences for similar practices so far
(f) Finally, the problem of controls on yerba mate is still linked to the lack of
accepted analytical methods, on the one hand, and the short shelf-life.