Out of lack of a clear answer from Google, I have come to the second most reliable source of truth on the internet, OzBargain.
I have been purchasing the" Heart Smart Extra Lean Beef Mince" from Woolies, or occasionally the "5 Star Extra Lean Mince" from Coles. A 500g tray sets me back $10.50 and the nutrition information between the brands is essentially the same.
After visiting Aldi recently, I noticed that they also sell "Jindurra Station 5 Star Beef Mince" with a price tag f $9.50 for 500g. Given the cheaper price for the same product, the purchase was a no brainer.
However, cooking the product I found that the Aldi mince gave off significantly more water than the Coles/Woolies equivalent.
You would think that if the mince was of the same standard (i.e 5 stars), I wouldn't have noticed such a difference? I've done this twice now and have prepared the mince in exactly the same way I did with the Woolies/Coles mince, so the only variable remaining is the mince itself.
Though the Aldi brand didn't have nutritional information on the packaging, the term "5 star" would have me believe that this is the same standard of mince as the Coles and Woolies type (I scanned the Aldi barcode in myfitness pal and the nutrition information was the same as Woolies/Coles - whether to believe myfitness pal is up for debate). My thinking here is that this the star rating is in line with purchasing "skim" milk, where labelling the product "skim" legally sets the minimum and maximum standard of the nutritional value.
But I think this is where I am wrong and is what has brought me to post here today: Are there standards for the 'star' ratings of beef mince sold in Australia?
I'm sure we've all heard rumours that butchers pump meat full of water to increase the weight, but I am beginning to think this might actually be true, at least with Aldi mince. If they pump the mince with more water, proportionately there is less fat and it meets the criteria of 5 stars?
I am struggling to think of any other reason why the Aldi mince gives off more water than the Woolies/Coles equivalent.
If they pump it with water you should see it in the ingredient list.