Sausage dispute in Germany: ex-chancellor Schroeder defends currywurst | Culture and Lifestyle in Germany and Europe | DW

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Currywurst, the legendary curry sausage that originated in Berlin in the late 1940s, is a German national fast food. And they offer it not only in eateries, but also as a full meal in industrial canteens. Moreover: for almost three decades, currywurst was the most popular dish ordered in German canteens, and only in 2020, during a pandemic, did it yield to spaghetti bolognese. And in the canteens of Volkswagen factories, before the pandemic, currywurst was a hit: VW workers ate up to seven million sausages a year. But this August, the concern decided to break with tradition. The former German chancellor stood up to defend the sausage.

Currywurst is a Volkswagen branded product

Volkswagen’s currywurst is as branded as cars. Sausages for canteens of the concern are made in its own meat-cutting shop. This product is even assigned a separate number in the corporate catalog. But given the fact that more and more Germans are cutting down on meat consumption, the auto giant decided to offer its employees an alternative.

Group headquarters in Wolfsburg

From the end of August in the dining room of the Markenhochhaus, the headquarters of the concern in Wolfsburg, it will be possible to eat only vegetarian and vegan dishes. And only rarely will there be fish on the menu. The concern explains this culinary reform with the wishes of the employees themselves and the concern for the environment. In the production canteen in Hanover, it has already been implemented.

Former Bundeskanzler drowns for sausages

However, not everyone in the team will be happy with the innovation. Even with the onset of the pandemic, when employees of the concern were offered currywurst only once a week, many protested. And in order to return the sausage to the daily menu, even the trade unions had to intervene. In all fairness, the current innovation cannot be called a radical attempt on the sacred: literally a few meters away on the menu of another dining room of the concern, everything will remain the same, including the sausages.

Nevertheless, the decision to cut the sausage quota sparked controversy in Germany. Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder also joined in. “If I was still on VW’s supervisory board, this would not have happened,” he posted on LinkedIn and launched the hashtag #rettetdieCurrywurst. At the same time, he noted the benefits of a vegetarian diet and admitted that he himself periodically adheres to it. “But no currywurst at all? No!”, – the former politician is indignant. Gerhard Schroeder doubts that the employees themselves wanted to give up this dish, and calls currywurst and fries an “energy bar” for workers in production.

An energy bar for the Bundestag elections?

The former Federal Chancellor’s love for sausages has been known since the 1990s. In 2002, introducing George W. Bush to German cuisine, the German Chancellor ordered currywurst and apple strudel for him at a Berlin restaurant. On social media and in the German media, his emotional support for currywurst has generated a wave of comments of all kinds.

Former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is a well-known connoisseur of currywurst

Former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is a well-known connoisseur of currywurst

Sausage manufacturers take this opportunity to advertise their product with humor. Others drown for vegetarianism. There is also an opinion that Schroeder is trying to help in the current election campaign for the Bundestag of the SPD party, which he himself led until 2004. Turning to such simple and straightforward things as sausages on canteen menus can arouse sympathy among the workers whose interests the party represents. But whether this “energy bar” will help the Social Democrats is another question. “Doubtful. Not only sausages can become obsolete,” – says, in particular, the portal Spiegel Online, because in the era of electric cars, the preferences of voters are changing.

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