Alcohol is in more foods than you think. However, for many people it is important to know where it is found – even in small amounts. We explain how you can detect hidden alcohol in food.

Pregnant women in particular should avoid these foods

The Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection and the Blue Cross have put together which foods may contain hidden alcohol. There are various reasons to deal with the question of the alcohol content in food, according to the Blue Cross. This is often due to the concern for a healthy diet. Parents attach great importance to this, especially when it comes to small children. The desire for an alcohol-free diet can also have cultural, religious or health reasons, for example in the case of chronically ill or alcohol-dependent people. To protect the child, pregnant or breastfeeding women should also not consume alcohol.

But those who want to eat alcohol-free come across several problems:
Food manufacturers’ products change regularly, so lists of alcohol-containing foods quickly become outdated.
For many foods, a reference to alcohol can only be found in the small print on the back.
Everyone has to ask themselves how strict they are about foods that only contain trace amounts of alcohol.
Natural alcohol, for example in sauerkraut, fruit juices or bread, is created by the natural fermentation process. According to the Hamburg consumer advice center, it rarely exceeds 0.3 percent. It cannot be tasted and is considered harmless. However, the natural fermentation process can also produce alcohol in yeast dough, kefir or very ripe fruit. Especially fruit with a high sugar content is affected. The newspaper Spektrum Wissenschaft, for example, describes bananas as the “permille devil among foods” because ripe bananas can contain around 0.6 percent alcohol by volume.

Tips to spot alcohol in food

The good news: There are numerous tips for identifying alcohol in food. This is what you should do to become aware of hidden alcohol content in food:
Read the ingredients: Caution! Especially with little alcohol, the note is only in the middle or at the end of the list. The following terms also indicate alcohol in a product: ethyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol, ethanol, potable alcohol and ethanol. E numbers can also be an indication, E 334 = tartaric acid, E 1519 = benzyl alcohol or phenylmethanol.
In restaurants, at counters and cafes, ask about the ingredients to see if the products contain alcohol.
Alcohol is often added to cake-like (ready) foods. Sometimes it helps to sniff the bottle as soon as you open it, because that way you can smell the alcohol better. Also be careful with sweets: Chocolate fillings often contain alcohol.

Alcohol can hide in these foods:

According to the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection, hidden alcohol can also be found in the following foods:
Chocolate and liqueur ice cream, cream cakes
chocolate bar
Rum Grape Chocolate
chocolates
easter eggs
wine gums
Plum, sour cherry and apricot jam
Red fruit jelly
Apple compote
Oxtail, onion and fish soup
gravy
Hühnerfrikassee
game dishes
Meatballs
Fish stew, mussels, fish fillet, blue trout
Wine sauerkraut, red cabbage
Cheese fondue
Black Forest cake, Herrentorte, eggnog cake, red wine cake
donuts
Since there is a labeling obligation, one can assume that significant amounts of alcohol in a food are labeled on the packaging. However, this labeling obligation also has gaps: If an aroma is dissolved in alcohol, this does not have to be stated in the list of ingredients of the end product, writes the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection. And advises: “If you want to be sure to avoid even the smallest amounts of alcohol, ask the manufacturer directly.” There are also gaps in labeling for some confectionery or small packaging, the Blue Cross reports on its website. Cakes at the bakery, food in the restaurant or ice cream at the ice cream shop may also have a low alcohol content, but this does not need to be specifically pointed out.

Alcohol poorly labeled as a preservative

The alcohol content of drinks only has to be specified if they contain more than 1.2 percent alcohol by volume, writes the Baden-Württemberg consumer advice center. That means: Even in “non-alcoholic beer” there can still be a small amount of alcohol. Many non-alcoholic beers contain the note <0.5 percent alcohol.

The VerbraucherService Bayern also warns that Fassbrause often still has residual alcohol of 0.15 to 0.5 percent by volume. In addition, there is a bitter taste similar to that of alcoholic beer. In terms of food law, Fassbrause is still considered a non-alcoholic drink, as the alcohol content is less than 0.5 percent. Probably not a health problem, but not a sensible drink for children or young people, as they get used to the taste of beer very early on.