Cream of asparagus crop may clock up air miles

Wattie's Asparagus Spears, $5.29 for 340g. Trident AsparagusSpears, $4.99 for 425g.

Wattie’s tin contains Peruvian spears while Trident uses local product.

A friend hastily sent me a message from his phone immediately after he had attempted to buy some tinned asparagus spears at his local supermarket.

"They're from Peru!" he said. "Wattie's from Peru!"

He was heading home to make a fish pie and wanted to add the asparagus but left empty-handed, dismayed that he could not find some New Zealand-grown asparagus.

He is not alone. I am often perturbed to see fresh asparagus that has been flown in from the US, sold in our supermarkets.

And when asparagus is out of season, Kiwis will often reach for a can of asparagus to make that very popular snack, asparagus rolls.

Wattie's Asparagus Spears

Ingredients (in order of greatest quantity first)

Asparagus (60 per cent)
The can clearly states "Made in Peru", which could mean New Zealand asparagus is flown to Peru to be canned, or Peruvian asparagus is canned in Peru then sent here for sale, which I think is the more likely scenario.

Peru is able to produce asparagus very cheaply because of low labour costs, cheap water and a climate which encourages a high yield. It is a big exporter of processed asparagus.

The Wattie's website states that its asparagus is "Picked at its peak and canned for its unique flavour, Wattie's chooses only the finest asparagus", which carefully sidesteps the country of origin issue.

Water

Salt
Compared to the Trident tinned asparagus these taste less salty and do contain less sodium at 275mg per 100g.

Mineral salt (stannous chloride)
I haven't come across this ingredient before. It is made by dissolving tin in hydrochloric acid and is used in foods to retain colour.

Trident Asparagus Spears

Ingredients (in order of greatest quantity first)

Asparagus spears (48 per cent)
This is New Zealand asparagus and it is taller than the Wattie's spears.

Water

Salt
This tastes very salty and you'll get 340mg of sodium per 100g.

Acidity regulator (330)
This is citric acid.

Mineral salt (512)
Stannous chloride as above.

My recommendations:

I was a little surprised to see Trident, a brand I associate with Asian noodle products, using a locally grown product whereas Wattie's, which is proudly a New Zealand company, using Peruvian asparagus.

Both tins of asparagus contain similar ingredients, with the Trident tin adding citric acid.

I preferred the Wattie's product because the spears tasted better and were more firm whereas the Trident ones were a bit too mushy and very salty.

But you'll pay more for the Peruvian asparagus than you will for the locally grown product.

Highlights

• Wattie's asparagus from Peru, Trident asparagus from New Zealand.
• Trident higher in salt.
• Both use a tin chloride to retain colour.

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