Poor quality (freezer burn) of the new frozen pretzel

Schlechte Qualität (Gefrierbrand) der neuen tiefgefrorenen Brezel

Hello

Until about 1 1/2 years ago, Migros (e.g. Zurzach and Döttingen) had 8 frozen pretzels of excellent quality.
Then they were taken out of the range for about a year.
Frozen pretzels have been available again for about four or five months, but there are now 10 in a pack. That would be great if the quality hadn't deteriorated so much.
I now have 4 out of 5 packs, all of which were covered in the worst freezer burn (see pictures). One pack was covered with little freezer burn and only one pack had no freezer burn.
The store manager confirmed the severe freezer burn and replaced it, but he also told me that he had checked other packs and had not discovered any freezer burn.
I had reported it to him so that the manufacturer would take action, but if it is not reported, nothing can be done.
Unfortunately, the freezer burn continues (as described, except for one pack).
The old manufacturer simply did not offer this.
If it goes on like this, I'll have to look elsewhere or just bring it back every time, which to be honest is too stupid for me as I always go to Migros after work and when I get home it's closed.
I also feel pretty stupid opening the pack at the information desk every time and checking whether there is freezer burn or not. I've already done this and only taken the goods home if they were free from freezer burn, but you feel pretty stupid...

As I said, I would be happy if Migros contacted the manufacturer and told them that they should produce flawless goods and also that the transport chain and storage at Migros should be checked.
Frozen pretzels are far too delicate to afford inaccuracies there.

What does Migros say about this?
The one below is now standard, at least in the Zurzach store
The yellowish color is normal and the whitish color is freezer burn:

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All replies (18)

Frederica

Has nothing to do with the worms on Migipedia. Would be better placed in the section "Everything about shopping" or "News and updates"! ?

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Imperator

Hello Alter_Schwede62,
I believe that this is not just classic freezer burn!
The way I have studied the two photos, I believe that these pretzels were also
were simply badly "leached".
When you photographed the pretzels, they thawed immediately during this time, the
sodium hydroxide solution shines darker. So where the pretzel is white, there is simply too little
or no lye at all, so they have not been properly leached.
There is probably also some freezer burn, or the cold chain was not properly maintained so that the pretzels were thawed.
I can't be completely sure, I would have to see the pretzels in the flesh.
Must buy again, haven't had any bad experiences so far, but haven't bought any for a while.
Istanbul is right, it's the wrong category - it can happen, I'm not always sure about the category either.
Greetings from the Emperor

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Alter_Schwede62

Maybe a moderator can move it to where it actually belongs.
It's a complaint about the current product quality.

The pretzels already look like this in the packaging immediately after purchase.
I wet them so you can see the difference more clearly.
Of course, I don't know whether it's a faulty lye application. I'm only really familiar with things like this because you open a pack and take out, say, only 2 pretzels every week. The packs are of course sealed with clips. After two to three weeks, the pretzels start to look similar. Usually you can then dispose of the last 2 pretzels because they can no longer be baked properly.
Sometimes it's on the top, sometimes on the bottom. I've already had a pack where all the undersides of the pretzels were completely white.

Whether it's freezer burn or poor leaching, storage or all of the above, something should be done in any case.

I am deliberately writing this here so openly and possibly brutally because I don't want the pretzels to be taken out of the range, which would be the easiest solution, but because I want them to return to the quality of the past, when they simply didn't exist.
If that wasn't the case, these pretzels would be a very good product!

Best regards

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Imperator

It would be a real shame if these pretzels disappeared from the range!
Since, as I said, I haven't bought any for a long time, I can't say exactly what it is.
I should be able to look at the product properly, then, as a baker, I can say roughly what it might be.
Once I have bought, if the same problem occurs and no answer has come yet, I will post another opinion.
I will post another opinion.
Because of the category, it should not be an instruction, I have often written in what is probably the wrong category

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Alter_Schwede62

Yes, that would be a real shame, because not only do they taste good, they're also not chewy like other pretzels.

Of course, it could also be that it's a store problem or that I'm the only one there who buys them. In that case, of course, they sit on the freezer shelf for months.
I don't know. I only know that this massive problem has only existed since the relaunch. I never noticed anything like this before.
They used to be completely yellowish, without any freezer burn or whatever it is.

Maybe you can recognize it when I write what happens to these spots during baking.
With the very first ones, which were completely white on the undersides, these areas did not turn as brown as the others during baking.
When you bake the pretzels you saw the pictures of, the affected white areas become darker, almost slightly black, compared to the normal yellow areas.

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Dragonball

What bothers me more the pretzels are made in Germany and are about 4.50fr in Switzerland and the same (which is probably also the same producer) are available at Edeka for 1.69€

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Alter_Schwede62

Well then I'll have a closer look at the ones at Edeka. Thanks for the tip. ?

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Guest

Hello Alter_Schwede62

Thank you for your feedback on the baked pretzels. The store manager has already confirmed that something is wrong. I will now forward your feedback to the people responsible so that they can take a closer look at the problem with both the store and the supplier and take the necessary measures.

Do you still have a pack at home that you have recently found to be faulty? The LOT number and best-before date would help us to check this.

Kind regards
Tanja

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Alter_Schwede62

Hello

No, unfortunately not, and there's nothing on the virtual receipt either.
But Migros should have more information than I do and should be able to see it easily, because everything was scanned at the checkout.
Their exact name is: M-CLAS LAUGENBREZEL 10ST
In principle, it concerns every purchase since February or March, except for one box, where there was really no defect at all.
But when I bought the pretzel on 21.05.15, for example, I discovered these defects again very badly.
These are the pictures from above.
Theoretically, I could go on like this with every pretzel and keep posting pictures until it stops.
But to be honest, it's not worth it to me.

But I'm happy to rely on you and see what happens in the store, and if I'm given the go-ahead again, as I was back then by the store manager, who told me that everything would be OK from now on, and it's not, I'll immediately post the pictures here again... until it really stops.
You'll have to excuse me, but after about 4 months of this quality, I'm slowly but surely becoming very disappointed.

Kind regards

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Guest

Hello Alter_Schwede62

I have spoken to the product manager. The supplier of the pretzels has been the same since 2007, when Migros started selling them. According to the person responsible, we have not received any complaints about this product for over 2 years. The cold chain during transportation to the store is guaranteed. We are therefore still unable to explain how the damage came about. According to our specialists, the pretzels would have to have been insufficiently chilled for a very long time for such a freezer burn to occur.

We are continuing to investigate the issue and will carry out further tests with the supplier.

Kind regards
Tanja

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