How to Avoid Buying Fake Honey
It’s a sad fact of life in the 21st Century, that counterfeit goods are rife. We see news stories of raids on premises hawking fake designer trainers, handbags and clothes and online marketplaces selling big name brands at knock down prices. (You know what they say, if it’s too good to be true, it probably is.) We even hear of dangerously fake cigarettes, vapes and alcohol that can cause serious harm.
But fake honey? That gloriously golden, deliciously sticky food of the Gods, being faked? Surely not?
But unfortunately, it’s true. Cheap sugar syrups and adulterated honey is regularly being sold under the guise of real honey by unscrupulous traders – and we might not know a thing about it.
The True Scale of the Fake Honey Problem
The Guardian recently reported that an astonishing 90% of honey samples selected from UK retailers failed a pioneering authenticity test that checks the DNA profiles against genuine honey. Of the 30 honeys sampled, 25 were from big name retailers and five were from UK beekeepers. All five of the UK beekeeper honeys were considered genuine. But 24 of the 25 big name brands were deemed “suspicious”.
This follows a report in 2023 that found 46% of honeys imported into the EU were suspected to be fraudulent.
The problem is so widespread, that the World Beekeeping Awards body have announced that they’ll no longer be giving any prizes for honey as concerns about fraud in the global supply chain are too great.
So, it seems that it might not always be unscrupulous traders selling adulterated honey. Your big name supermarket might be just as guilty, even if unknowingly.
What is fake honey?
It’s widely acknowledged that fake honey has been adulterated, or ‘watered down’ with cheap sugar syrups made from rice, sugar beet and sugar cane – all mass-grown crops, usually farmed using pesticides and chemical sprays. So, we’re clearly not getting what we think we’re spending our money on. And we’re certainly not getting the health benefits that we think we are.
In the UK, surveys show that since the pandemic, 60-65% of us are consciously choosing healthier options when we eat. Honey, rich in antioxidants, anti-inflammatories and antimicrobial compounds, is a healthy addition to our diet – and millions of us can’t get enough of it. We Brits consume an incredible 25-35 thousand tons of honey each year.
But not all honey is created equal. To get the health benefits of honey, we need to be eating true honey, complete with its impressive nutritional profile and health-promoting enzymes.
How to spot fake honey
The overwhelming majority of honey imported into the UK, and usually sold in supermarkets, comes from China, and has a very complex food chain that’s impossible for us as consumers to trace. It’s these imports that are the problem.
However, we can do some quick checks to test if our honey is fake or real:
· Check the label for the country of origin – avoid labels that claim to be “mixed origin” or from outside of the EU (this normally means China)
· Choose honey that proudly displays its floral type – ‘monofloral’ is best
· Real honey may crystalise over time – this is never a bad sign!
· Real honey will sink to the bottom of a glass of warm water and will require some stirring to dissolve - sugar syrups will dissolve almost instantly
· Real honey has a complex flavour – keep it on your tongue for a few minutes to detect a range of flavours
· Real honey doesn’t spread easily – cheap, fake honey will drip straight away – beware ‘convenient’ squeezy honey and take some time drizzling the real thing on your breakfast from a spoon (who cares if you need to suck it clean?!)
· Real honey costs more than a few quid – respecting the hard work of the bees and the beekeepers costs money
Choose Real Honey from Necta & Hive
We’re not saying that anything other than UK honey can be trusted. Buying honey direct from your local beekeeper is wonderful. But buying overseas honey can absolutely mean that you’re buying the real deal.
Our monofloral, unpasteurised, active, healing Jarrah and Marri honeys are made by bees foraging exclusively on trees from the eucalyptus family in Western Australia. We import them direct from the beekeepers and we’re giving New Zealand Manuka honey a run for its money. We’re 100% the real honey deal. Try yours today! https://nectahive.com/collections/honey-collection
