It's is not devon, it's not straz, and it's certainly not luncheon.

The humble fritz sausage could feature in the history books alongside Champagne and Stilton cheese.

The Australian Meat Industry Council (AMIC) has launched a campaign to recognise the humble fritz sausage as a South Australian icon.

Chair of AMIC's smallgoods council and owner of Barossa Fine Foods, Franz Knoll said he would spend as much time and money as possible to preserve the "integrity of fritz".

"It's something we need to celebrate as South Australians, it's part of who we are," Mr Knoll said.

"If we can protect our heritage and it's about recognition, it can be a geographical indicator to say this is made here, by us … we need to protect the integrity of the product.

"We don't want to cheapen it; we want it to be the best product we can make and it's something you should eat as a choice."

Butcher weighs in

At Jamestown, in South Australia's Mid-North, butcher Denis Ganley said fritz was in demand.

Mr Ganley, who estimated one in five customers bought fritz, supported the move to make it a South Australian icon, partly because of the role it had played in his childhood.

"We all grew up on it as kids; you used to go to the butcher shop and get a slice of fritz and that tradition hasn't changed," Mr Ganley said.



Jamestown butcher Denis Ganley preparing some ham. ( Paul Culliver )

"When I was growing up I probably had fritz and sauce every day for school to tell you the truth, even when Mum gave us money for the tuckshop I used to order fritz and sauce … there's not too many butchers who don't like fritz and sauce."

Mr Ganley said the choice of skin played a big role in how fritz was seen.

"If it's in a plastic skin honestly keep clear of it because you get that fatty taste — that's where fritz had a bit of a bad name for a while but now it's going back the other way," he said.

However, if the AMIC successfully pushed for fritz to be considered a State Heritage Icon then it would be a useful marketing tool for him and other butchers.

"It's probably the only sausage in SA that is generally accepted everywhere," he said.

Health on the fritz

Adelaide dietitian Nick Wray said fritz was not necessarily good for you, but he said there were plenty of bigger problems out there for childhood health.



He said the main downside of fritz was its saturated fat and salt content.



"It's not brilliant for people suffering from cholesterol or heart disease — a bit like salami," he said.



Mr Wray said how bad fritz was for them also depended on how healthy they eat the rest of the time.



He was also quick to say there was nothing wrong with people's nostalgia about getting a slice of fritz at the butcher.



"The history of a kid getting a piece of fritz at the butcher isn't an issue, we have bigger issues to deal with in children's health such as sugary drinks," he said.



Adelaide dietitian Julia Trigg said a lot of iconic Australian foods weren't healthy but it was OK to have them every now and then.



"They're not healthy foods per se, but I guess there are a lot of sometimes foods that it doesn't hurt to have every now and again," she said.