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Not Everyone Mixes What They Promise!

Just a quick mix? Stiftung Warentest has currently tested a wide range of blenders. There were 18 devices ranging from inexpensive smoothie mixers to medium-priced stand mixers to high-end high-performance mixers. Who stands out with their performance? And who turned out to be the surprise loser?

A fresh smoothie or a creamy vegetable soup? Stand mixers are used again and again in the kitchen and puree vegetables and fruit in no time. But what are the differences between the devices? Because the result does not always meet expectations. So how do you find the blender that suits you best?

What do you want to mix?

Not every mixer is equally good at all tasks. Irrespective of the test results below, one must first become aware of what the device is actually intended to mix?

  • Smoothie mixer: They are suitable for smaller amounts of up to 600 milliliters, i.e. about two glasses of fruit juice or smoothie. Most of the mixing containers can be closed with a lid and can be easily taken with you.
  • Stand mixer: If you want to make purees or baby food, for example, it is best to use a stand mixer. Even smoothies with a high liquid content are no problem for him. A good blender will even conjure up mayonnaise.
  • High-performance mixer: For ambitious hobby cooks, either a food processor with a matching mixer attachment or a high-performance mixer is worthwhile. They can be used to mix, puree or, in the case of ice cubes, crush larger quantities.

The stand mixer was put to the test!

In total, Stiftung Warentest tested 18 different mixers. These included six smoothie mixers, seven devices with an output of up to one kilowatt, and five more powerful mixers with an output of more than one kilowatt. The test result summarizes, among other things, the respective handling, the lifespan, and the quality of the preparations. The smoothie mixers should conjure up green smoothies and mixed fruit drinks.

The blenders, including the high-performance devices, had to prove their skills in the preparation of green smoothies, ice cream drinks, mayonnaise, pancake batter, nut butter, baby food, and cold vegetable soups. They should also crush ice cubes and chop parsley and onions.

AEG SB25003 makes the best smoothie!

All six smoothie blenders tested, regardless of the price, are safe to use and deliver a good smoothie result. However, the devices from Clatronic and Russell Hobbs fail in the endurance test and give up before the halfway point of the test. The smoothie blender from AEG emerged as the winner of the test.

Braun blender prevails

If you want to use your mixer often and in a variety of ways, it is worth spending ten to 20 euros more in the category of stand mixers up to 1000 watts. The general mix result is not responsible for the poor rating of the cheaper devices from Russell Hobbs and AEG, but rather the poor handling and short shelf life.

The knives of the mid-priced Bosch mixer spin when making baby porridge, and all devices fail when making thick nut butter. The best was the Braun JB 5160 blender. The result of Krups’ most expensive mixer was only “satisfactory” – it failed to handle. In general, all devices are comparably heavy and noisy.

Big loser: Kitchen Aid

High-performance blenders are generally expensive, except for the €172 WMF blender, which has a “satisfactory” rating. The biggest weakness here is putting on and taking off the mixer attachment. The fast blades of the Vitamix puree are best, it even crushes small raspberry seeds. The second good in this group is the Gastroback Mixer. For noise and durability, the Kitchen Aid mixer receives the grade unsatisfactory. In the endurance test, a drive belt tore early and a pitcher broke.

Hand blender vs stand mixer

Many households already have a hand blender – isn’t that enough? For comparison, Stiftung Warenest tested the successor to a good hand blender from test 8/2011 (see test.de/stabmixer). He did well! It usually purees and mixes well or very well, but does not crush ice. He chops herbs and onions much better in the chopper attachment than in standing devices.

The conclusion

If you want to drink a fresh smoothie every day, you are well-advised to use the AEG smoothie mixer for 40.50 euros. Cheaper devices are more difficult to handle and one has to reckon with the release of critical substances from the silicone seals.

For applications that go beyond preparing a smoothie, a blender is worthwhile. Not everyone is worth their money, but here, too, it is better to invest ten euros more. Otherwise, it could happen that he is not her kitchen helper for long. In any case, you are well served with the Braun blender, as it does what it promises for its price.

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Food

Like a Bar of Chocolate, Everyone Earns Fairly

Whether whole milk or dark, filled or plain, as balls or in bar form – very few of us can resist chocolate. However, most (conscious) consumers also know that the cocoa business is often very unfair. Why is that? Does it have to be that way? And isn’t that fair for everyone? Let’s find out.

What does “fair” actually mean? Working conditions? Pay? old-age insurance? Safety at work? Or all together? The Duden defines “fair” as “according to the rules of living together; decent, just in dealing with others”. Somehow understandable and also simple. In a globalized world, in which one half lives at the expense of the other half, but far removed from cross-border reality – especially with regard to economic activity. When it comes to products like coffee, clothing and cocoa, the lack of social, economic and environmental sustainability is pervasive. That needs to change! And on all levels.

Our chocolate production is obsolete!

When it comes to chocolate production, we still live behind the moon. Or under neocolonial structures – and thus in unfair structures between the countries of the Global North and the Global South:

70 percent of the cocoa grown worldwide comes from Africa.
The raw materials from Africa are mainly used for the production of goods in the Global North.
Less than one percent of the chocolate grown worldwide is produced in Africa itself.

What’s not fair about it: Neo-colonial economic structures are based on the fact that instead of end products, only raw materials such as cocoa beans are exported from Africa. However, the production of goods makes up the majority of the value added. And this usually does not take place where the raw materials come from – but in the already richer industrialized countries.

Central and West Africa are particularly dependent on the export of raw materials. Here, 95 percent of all export earnings come from the sale of raw materials. And that has serious consequences for countries like Ghana due to the fluctuating world market prices: an insecure national budget, a lack of infrastructure and dependence on imports of industrial products from the Global North.

The farmers are now at the origin of the value chain and have little choice but to sell their cocoa beans at dumping prices. This in turn means that children often work on the plantations, since the yields from the export of raw materials are often not sufficient to pay fair wages. As a result, the children do not go to school, education is missing and with it their future opportunities.

A paradox: consumers accept exploitation despite knowledge

And most consumers know about the unfair structures. Nevertheless, it is this “normal” chocolate that is most often bought worldwide. And this despite the fact that there have long been alternatives.

The Utopia study on the subject of child labor has shown that child labor is mainly suspected in cocoa, coffee and clothing, and conscious consumers want appropriate labelling. Nevertheless: What is bought is what is always bought: Sales of regular chocolate products are significantly higher than those of fair trade products. And that despite the fact that more and more people are turning to Fairtrade chocolate. Unfortunately, the overall share remains very small.

The supply chain law passed in summer 2021 should ensure more transparency and sustainability in the future. Since then, companies have been obliged to set minimum standards and to make their supply chains transparent. However, critics also point to incomplete regulations here: In most cases, it is not clearly communicated where a product comes from and under what conditions it was produced. Because companies do not yet have to be able to prove their supply chains completely up to the cultivation plantation.

Does that mean that we all have to stop eating chocolate? Of course not! There are many alternatives that already do a lot better. And then there’s fairafric – the fair chocolate that’s really fair for everyone.

Fair chocolate for everyone!

Unfortunately, fair trade does not necessarily mean fair. Because even with the “good” chocolates with recognized seals, it mostly remains with the pure trade with the cocoa beans, which are only processed into chocolate in the country of consumption.

It depends on the country of manufacture

As already learned above, fair structures depend above all on where the actual production of goods takes place. An evaluation by Inkota, an association against hunger, poverty and for a fair globalization, shows: With an average chocolate, around six percent of the price paid stays in Africa, with fair trade around seven to eight percent. Fairtrade, for example, pays a premium of around USD 200 per tonne of cocoa to the cocoa cooperative, of which only a fraction reaches the farmers. In a 2018 study, Fairtrade self-critically admitted that around 60 percent of Fairtrade-certified cocoa farming families in Ivory Coast live below the absolute poverty line.

For fairafric, on the other hand, the focus is on relocating value creation to Africa. And so when you buy a bar of fairafric chocolate, 43 percent of the price paid stays in Ghana.

Fair chocolate creates fair work

Fairafric is a German-Ghanaian social business that produces organic chocolate bars in its own solar-powered chocolate factory – in Ghana. Thanks to the on-site production, in addition to the activities on the farms, qualified and well-paid jobs in the production of the finished end products are created in Africa.

The increased income enables employees to give their children access to further education. The sourcing of local ingredients, everything from organic cultivation, and the production in Suhum ensure that the added value remains local and that the entire production is in Ghanaian hands.

fairafric pays the highest cocoa premium in West Africa, namely USD 600 per tonne of cocoa beans. The 861 organic farmers from the partner cooperative Yayra Glover are paid fairly and regularly trained to improve the quality of the cocoa and thus increase the yield and their income. In addition, the fairafric foundation holds shares on behalf of the farmers so that they can share in the profits.

What is “fair” is not something we can sugarcoat in any way. Because it’s only really fair if it applies to everyone involved. With seals, conscious consumers should take a close look at what the seal contains and what exactly it stands for. Fairafric makes it easy – at least when buying chocolate: fairafric is fair for everyone.

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Cooking Tips

9 Tips for Everyone Who Likes Grilling

Will the weather be good for the May holidays? .. You know, it doesn’t matter. True connoisseurs of “rest with taste” are ready for anything: they have already ordered the Grill Master uniform, for which the decree is only the owner’s appetite! Are you planning to join too? Then it’s time to get acquainted with useful recommendations and master the subtleties of cooking nutritious and aromatic … Light, juicy and crunchy … Ruddy, bright, striped … In general, absolutely irresistible treats on a home grill!

  1. Remove the meat from the refrigerator 20 minutes before grilling to allow it to warm to room temperature. Frozen meat will not cook evenly.
  2. Do not leave meat at room temperature for more than an hour, otherwise, bacteria will multiply rapidly and the meat will become less fresh. If you need to defrost meat, leave it overnight or all day in the main compartment of the refrigerator.
  3. Do not add salt until the steak is cooked or it will become tough as the salt wicks moisture away.
  4. Do not pierce the meat with a fork or prong. The juices will run away, the meat will become drier and less flavorful. Use a spatula or tongs to push or turn the pieces.
  5. When grilling, do not rush to turn it over – wait until the crust appears on the grill. If you try to lift the meat until it is tender, it may stick to the wire rack.
  6. Indirect heat is best for grilling chicken, i.e. placing the meat in a cooler grill area for a slow, soft, and even heat.
  7. Test for hardness with the simplest tool: your own finger. A poorly done steak feels soft and spongy, a medium steak is lightly served when pressed, and a well done feels firm.
  8. Do not overdo it. It is better to undercook the grill than overcook it. You can always grill the meat if it’s damp.
  9. Let the dish rest. After removing the grill from the wire rack or baking dish, wait at least 5 minutes before slicing. This will allow the juices to soak back into the meat.
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