Hands off our kebab!

KEBAB shop owners up and down the country have been rocked by claims

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Tarih	: 29 Ocak 2009 13:36

KEBAB shop owners up and down the country have been rocked by claims made in a recent nationwide survey of doner kebabs that their fast food contains ‘shocking’ levels of fat, salt and calories.

The survey, conducted by the Local Authority Coordinators of Regulatory Services (Lacors), showed that officials from 76 councils sampled 494 kebabs to test their nutritional value.

According to the survey, the average doner the officials tested contained almost 1,000 calories - half a woman's recommended daily intake. Geoffrey Theobald, chairman of LACORS, said, “We would never consider kebabs part of a calorie controlled diet, but the level of saturated fat and salt in some is a serious cause for concern.

While some people may think they are making sensible choices by ordering a small kebab, this study showed little difference between small and large kebab weight. Reducing portion size is an easy and cost effective way for small businesses to help people eat sensibly.”

The survey shows that of those 494 kebabs tested, six were found to contain pork which had not be identified as an ingredient and two of those were described as Halal.

He also criticised kebabs which were labelled as being Halal but were clearly not.

“The study shows that even if there’s a food label it’s not necessarily accurate. Even kebabs labelled as Halal had problems with some found to contain pork. It is totally unacceptable that people that with certain faiths are unknowingly eating meats that are against their beliefs. Labelling is a safeguard for people to help them make informed choices so need to be accurate. 

“This study has turned the spotlight on doner kebabs and we hope that manufacturers rise to the challenge and work with councils to provide a healthier product that contains only what it says on the label.”  

Mahir Kilinc from the National Association of Turkish Restaurants, Takeaways and Supermarkets (NARTS) said the study had to be taken seriously though blamed the economic downturn for poor quality.

“The problem is that costs have gone up in every sector but the price of a doner kebab has remained the same,” Mr Kilinc said. “Add to this the very competitive market for selling kebab as a take away food and you can see why quality may have dipped.

“There are now a variety of wholesale kebab manufacturers and instead of going to reputable firms, some kebab shops may be temped to go for cheaper alternatives.

“Though the wholesale price of doner kebab may be cheap, the quality may not be ideal.”
Mr Kilinc said the kebab industry had to unite and try to set a minimum price for doner kebab which  would safe-guard quality.

He added that the claim that some doner kebabs were not Halal and contained pork was also worrying.

“We have to remember that we will lose those customers for whom it is vital that they have Halal food and as 80 per cent of kebab shops are Turkish owned, this would impact on the sector considerably.”
Mr Kilinc warned that if shops did not unite to protect their livelihood, the sector could suffer in the same way the textile industry had suffered in the past.

“Shops will close and many could become unemployed,” Mr Kilinc added.

Palmers Green kebab shop owner Riza Yigit said he agreed that they should be a minimum price for a doner kebab.

Mr Yigit, who owns Lezzet Sofrasi, said they make their own doner kebab.

“We produce our own doner kebab using top quality meat which costs over £4 a kilo. But I know that many ready made doner can be bought for half that figure. You have to wonder what kind of things go into doner which is that cheap.

He added that a price should be fixed to ensure quality, similar to some kind of grading system in Turkey which is set by the Restaurant Federation there.

“If there was a minimum charge for doner and everyone stuck to it, I am sure the quality would improve.”

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