Fake Honey?
I read a disturbing article last week that sent me digging for more information for the last few days. Unfortunately I cannot find anything to refute the information. Instead, I find article after article supporting the findings of the first. Unbelievable!
Dr. Mercola put out an article entitled, “The Honey You Should Never Buy-It May Be Tainted with Lead and Antibiotics.“ If you are not interested in the part about the bee colony collapse, scroll down to the sub-title, “Is Your Honey Fake?” The assertions in the article are a result from a study by Food Safety News.
Researchers tested honey from all over the United States from farmer’s markets to Costco to the little packages of honey available at fast food chains. What they found is astounding. Over 3/4 of the honey tested is not what bees make. Let me say it another way. Only 25% of the honey tested was actually the honey that bees have been making since creation!
I am sure you are wondering, “What have I been putting in my coffee or tea every morning?” Well most likely, it has been ultra-filtered, sometimes diluted with water, without a trace of pollen or any beneficial element of honey. The FDA does not even consider ultra-filtered honey to be honey at all according to their agency press officer, Tammy Ward.
Most American beekeepers are puzzled by the desire of companies to ultra-filter honey except for one reason, which is to hide the origin of the honey. Therefore, it is highly likely that the honey comes from China. Chinese honey has been found to be tainted in many instances with antibiotics or contaminants. Removing the pollen enables them to get around steep tariffs on importing their cheap honey.
I don’t want to restate everything in both of the above-mentioned articles, but rather focus on what to do now. Well, don’t buy your non-organic honey from chain stores except for health food stores. Your best bet is to look for local honey. Supporting your local beekeepers will help them out and insure that you receive the real deal.
When we first began our adventure on the SCD protocol, thanks to one of my readers, I was able to buy raw local honey in bulk. I had a 5 gallon bucket filled with the sweet stuff. Since we rely on honey so much on this diet, we went through the raw honey quicker than expected. I have been trying to find some ever since and have been buying honey in 3 pound containers from grocery stores. After reading this disturbing news, I am trying even harder to track down some local raw honey.
Unfortunately the severe drought we experienced, negatively impacted the bees in the area. Whole hives were either killed by the intense heat or the lack of plants and lack of water did not allow the bees to produce enough excess honey. If you are aware of a source, please let me know by email. My family and I would greatly appreciate it. I would also like to know your thoughts. Are you disturbed by this news? Let me know your thoughts.
Most interesting. I reposted parts of this on my FB page. I so believe we are what we eat and strive to eat organic foods and or raise a great deal of what I eat. Thank you for this information.
Your best bet is always to buy honey from a local producer. It will also help with local plant allergies in many cases. We have a local producer that sells in our Grocery stores in our area. In other areas I try to find someone at local farmers markets on at a sale day in the town square.
Wild Ed’s Texas Outdoors
[...] with a disturbing report about honey. To read more, you can go to another article I wrote called, “Fake Honey?” to get the details of this news. The gist of the report is that most honey offered at grocery and [...]
From The National Honey Board
The November, 2011, FSN story on honey may have led readers to believe that any honey without pollen is not real honey. This is not true.
According to the United States Standards, honey can be filtered to remove fine particles, pollen grains, air bubbles and other materials found suspended in the honey1. In fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture gives higher grades for honey that has good clarity. Importantly, honey that has been filtered to meet USDA’s grading standards may not have pollen, but it is still honey.
Honey is filtered by U.S. packers for various reasons:
1. Many consumers prefer honey that is liquid and stays liquid for a long time.
o All honey crystallizes eventually. Suspended particles and fine air bubbles in honey contribute to faster crystallization. Filtering helps delay crystallization, helping the honey to remain liquid for a much longer period than unfiltered honey.
2. Many consumers prefer honey to be clear and brilliantly transparent.
o The presence of fine, suspended material (pollen grains, wax, etc.) and air bubbles results in a cloudy appearance that can detract from the appearance. Filtering is done to give a clear brilliant product desired by consumers. For the filtered style of honey, USDA Grading Standards for Extracted Honey give higher grades for honey that has good clarity.
o Honey is filtered to remove extraneous solids that remain after the initial raw processing by the beekeeper.
In contrast to the filtration methods used to meet USDA grading standards, ultrafiltration is a more complex process that results in a sweetener product. The FDA says this product should not be labeled honey. The Food Safety News article confuses filtration and ultrafiltration, applying FDA’s position on ultrafiltered honey to any honey without pollen. The fact is filtered honey may not have pollen, but it is still honey by national standards and is preferred by many consumers.
We are all concerned about illegal activities that negatively impact the honey industry, damage the image of honey, or cheat consumers. We support the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in its regulation of honey and oppose any practice that would jeopardize the quality, purity and image of honey.
However, the misunderstanding about ultrafiltration has misinformed consumers. Here’s what consumers need to know:
- Filtered honey is honey by national standards. Filtration removes floating particles, and sometimes pollen, and makes the honey liquid longer and improves clarity.
- Ultrafiltration produces a sweetener that should not be called honey.
- Honeybees make honey from nectar, not pollen.
1 For decades, many U.S. honey packers have been filtering raw honey prior to bottling in accordance with USDA’s United States Standards for Grades of Extracted Honey (May 23, 1985). According to section 52-1393 of the Standards , Filtered honey is honey of any type defined in these standards that has been filtered to the extent that all or most of the fine particles, pollen grains, air bubbles, or other materials normally found in suspension, have been removed. Section 52.1394 of the Standards also says that Pollen grains in suspension contribute to the lack of clarity in filtered style.
Bruce,
I appreciate you clarifying the difference between filtered honey and ultrafiltered honey. I believe that in my article, I too made the point that it was the ultrafiltered honey that the FDA did not recognize as honey. It is in everyone’s best interest for American beekeepers to be supported, which is why I have recommended that people look for local sources of raw honey.
Lara