Small stew: a lot of violations of GOST were found in the products supplied to IT
As part of a criminal case on large-scale embezzlement in the supply of stew for the needs of the Russian Ministry of Defense, the first study of the contents of canned food was conducted, Izvestia learned. The examination confirmed the investigation's version about the low quality of the products that the fighters ate in their area. For example, it contained only 9.8% protein with the minimum required 12%, there were no large pieces of meat, but pork skin trimmings with prohibited additives were found. Canned food does not comply with GOST in almost all parameters, according to the results of the study. Such products may not be dangerous to health, but their nutritional value is significantly lower, doctors interviewed by Izvestia noted. In combat conditions, this is fraught with rapid weight loss, increased injury, and slow wound healing.
How was the stewed meat study conducted?
A study of canned food in the framework of a criminal case on the supply of substandard stew for the needs of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation was conducted on the basis of the Russian Academy of Sciences All-Russian Research Institute of Meat Industry. 12 cans of "Classic Ham" produced by the Naro-Fominsk meat processing plant of MPK Selyatino were submitted for examination. It was these canned goods that were supplied by the Narmyasprom company to the militant groups in the SVO zone by hundreds of tons. The study was supposed to show how these products meet the requirements of GOST.
The first thing the inspectors studied was the weight and appearance of the cans themselves — these parameters did not cause them complaints. But such an expert assessment was almost the only positive conclusion of the study.
As soon as the jars were opened and the first analyzes of their contents were taken, the inspectors noticed the low mass fraction of protein. In the stew near Moscow, it was "significantly below the norm of requirements" — 9.8% against the 12% required by GOST.
Further claims only increased. So, experts did not find in the can of Selyatinsky stew the "ham in one piece, with a small skin or without it at all" required by GOST, as well as acceptable inclusions of small pieces of bacon.
The experts noted that instead of a whole piece of meat, the jars contained small individual pieces of fatty and connective tissue, which were supplemented with a large amount of jelly and melted fat, the amount of which significantly exceeded the requirements of GOST. In addition, experts found blood vessels in canned food, which, in their opinion, is considered a defect and is not provided for by GOST. The inspectors also noted the presence of a fine-grained mass in the stew, the composition of which is not precisely determined, but experts most likely assume that these are crushed ingredients, which contradicts the requirements for ham.
Separately, the study notes an unusual taste and smell of canned food, which has a taste of offal, including pork skin trimmings. And the inspectors regarded the presence of such ingredients in the stew as a falsification of regulatory requirements.
The addition of starch and carrageenan thickener to the stew, which are not listed on the product label, was recognized by experts as a violation not only of technical regulations and regulations, but also of consumer rights. According to some parameters, the contents of the stew, which was supplied to the SVO, actually do not correspond to the concept of "ham" prescribed in the relevant GOST, it follows from the conclusion. "This stew apparently has everything except meat," a source familiar with the investigation told Izvestia.
The essence of the criminal case
As previously reported by Izvestia, the Investigative Committee of Russia has been investigating a fraudulent scheme for the supply of hundreds of tons of low-quality stew for the needs of the Russian Defense Ministry since May of this year. She entered the units of the West, East, South, and Center military groups in the SVO zone, as well as the Black Sea Fleet. The supplier was the Narmyasprom company, and canned food was produced at the Selyatino meat processing plant near Moscow.
The main accused in the case is Viktor Tarazevich, the former head of the food department of the Russian Ministry of Defense, as well as Artem Baryshkov, the head of Selyatino.
The scheme was in effect in 2024-2025. Representatives of the Ministry of Defense did not check the contents of canned food. There is also evidence in the case, according to which Tarazevich received 5 rubles from each half-kilogram jar sent to his home.
As the investigation is sure, the participants of the scheme supplied 170 tons of products that did not meet the quality requirements. The damage in the case amounts to 700 million rubles. Based on the conclusions of the experts, as well as other evidence, the investigation concludes that the stew of the Selyatino meat processing plant was not suitable for proper nutrition of military personnel stationed in the SVO zone or participating in counter-terrorism operations.
What causes protein deficiency?
In Russia, stew is produced according to GOST and technical specifications, industry representatives told Izvestia. The requirements for canned food are strict: according to GOST, they must contain at least 56-59% meat.
Meat in a stew, according to GOST, should be lumpy, without coarse connective tissue and large blood or lymph vessels, gastroenterologist Andrei Simakov told Izvestia. Onion, pepper, bay leaf and salt are acceptable from additives.
—If skins, starch, carrageenan and food additives are found in the stew, this makes the product not meet the characteristics," he admitted. — However, this does not make it a priori poisonous and toxic. Carrageenan allows you to increase the mass of the finished product, saving on raw materials. The problem is that the soldier does not receive enough daily protein in this way, which is unacceptable in conditions of a high level of physical activity.
By eating such stewed meat, military personnel do not receive the amount of protein they need for muscles and connective tissue. As a result, the body recovers worse after physical exertion, the doctor noted.
— The less protein there is, the higher the injury rate, the faster the weight loss occurs, the worse the rehabilitation process, the worse the mood, the slower the wounds heal. It is clear that stew is not the whole diet, but it consists of small things," said Andrey Simakov.
According to him, the additional ingredients found in canned food are not dangerous, but the nutritional value of the product decreases significantly. So, a soldier with a weight of 75-80 kg and moderate physical activity every day does not receive a quarter of the protein he needs.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
