Street food vendors up in arms over possible EU kebab ban
BERLIN — The doner kebab, that grilled fast-food sandwich which is the gastronomic equivalent of an American hamburger in many European cities, is under fire.
The European Union’s legislature is moving to ban the phosphates used in the slabs of meat at the heart of the popular street snack that originated in Turkey. Up-in-arms kebab vendors in Germany have skewered the idea.
EU lawmakers are citing health concerns based on studies that linked phosphates to cardiovascular disease. Owners of takeout restaurants and industry groups claim the additives are needed to keep seasoned kebab meat juicy and flavourful, both during transport and on the vertical retail rotisseries where it is cooked.
Fueling the brouhaha is that some sausages containing phosphates are allowed to be sold in EU countries and would not be affected by any move involving kebab meat.