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Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

theguardian.com

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Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#101

Post by [deleted] »

throwup238 wrote: post #58
highcountess wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you sure what you believe is unadulterated honey because you are familiar with the taste, is not just adulterated and you are just so accustomed to fake honey that you confuse the two? I say that because basically all the honey I’ve ever bought in a store has always tasted flat and lacked flavor depth that has long made me wonder about its authority compared to known hive honey.

I’ve had raw honey straight from both domesticated and wild hives as it was collected so unless the bees themselves are adulterating it, I think I’ve got an accurate baseline for how honey is supposed to taste. Go out and buy a good manuka or wild Himalayan honey and you’ll quickly learn how to spot the real stuff. The honey I buy isn’t meant to look like filtered golden sugar syrup so adulterating it is practically…

[deleted]

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#102

Post by johnea »

I kept bees for about 15 years. Personally, I see 0 reasosn to have any kind of "award" anyway.

This is a purely subjective process. Different people like different things.

Honey is as varied as the forage that it's produced from.

This whole process of determining a "We're #1" is just a symptom of the autistic ape.

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#103

Post by ryandrake »

jart wrote: post #93
_3u10 wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s because honey is sugar syrup with a liberal sprinkling of marketing. The sugar syrup they are blending it with doesn’t have the right marketing and is therefore not honey.

No, it's not. Honey is defined by the USDA as being flower nectar that's been processed by bees[1]. Artificial honey can not be called honey[2]. If they're mixing it with high fructose corn syrup, then there should be a way to scientifically determine that. [1] https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Extracted... [2] https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Extracted...

Oh, the USDA publishes a rule! Surely everyone will follow that and the problem is solved.

Unfortunately we get the behavior that we let people get away with. Regulators are asleep, courts let companies weasel their way around everything, and reality doesn't care about published rules and standards.

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#104

Post by Mtinie »

EA-3167 wrote: post #76
Etheryte wrote: post #10

Here's a very straightforward guide to buying honey. If you see honey at a supermarket, no you don't, that's sugar syrup. If you see honey online, no you don't, that's sugar syrup. If you find an old dude with a small stand and a bunch of (most likely unlabelled) jars who only accepts cash, that's where you get real honey.

The place I buy honey is run by an older woman in Vermont who owns a lovely apiary. I've visited and seen the process, she's fantastic, her product is delicious, and it's as real as it gets. They're 4th gen family owned, so they really know what they're doing and it's all about the bees, the honey and their reputation. Plus the honey is so delicious. When I visited she gave me this little container of the foam that c…

My mom discovered Champlain Valley about 10 years ago, so now every time she visits (we’re in VA, she’s from CA), she sends an order with a two pound jar ahead so she has a honey she likes in our pantry. I don’t complain at all, because it means we have excellent honey to consume once she leaves :)

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#105

Post by deadbabe »

Etheryte wrote: post #10

Here's a very straightforward guide to buying honey. If you see honey at a supermarket, no you don't, that's sugar syrup. If you see honey online, no you don't, that's sugar syrup. If you find an old dude with a small stand and a bunch of (most likely unlabelled) jars who only accepts cash, that's where you get real honey.

So I’ve never had real honey? Why doesn’t someone just sell the stuff the small dude sells in a store?

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#106

Post by EA-3167 »

Mtinie wrote: post #104
EA-3167 wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The place I buy honey is run by an older woman in Vermont who owns a lovely apiary. I've visited and seen the process, she's fantastic, her product is delicious, and it's as real as it gets. They're 4th gen family owned, so they really know what they're doing and it's all about the bees, the honey and their reputation. Plus the honey is so delicious. When I visited she gave me this little container of the foam that c…

My mom discovered Champlain Valley about 10 years ago, so now every time she visits (we’re in VA, she’s from CA), she sends an order with a two pound jar ahead so she has a honey she likes in our pantry. I don’t complain at all, because it means we have excellent honey to consume once she leaves :)

Your mother sounds great; it's funny too because I was also introduced to this by my mother! She's an avid tea drinker, and loves honey in her tea. Meanwhile I have Greek yogurt most mornings, and with addition of really good honey it becomes unbeatable.

I guess the point my mother would claim is, "Listen to your mother, she knows best." Heh

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#107

Post by warkdarrior »

ryandrake wrote: post #103
jart wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, it's not. Honey is defined by the USDA as being flower nectar that's been processed by bees[1]. Artificial honey can not be called honey[2]. If they're mixing it with high fructose corn syrup, then there should be a way to scientifically determine that. [1] https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Extracted... [2] https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Extracted...

Oh, the USDA publishes a rule! Surely everyone will follow that and the problem is solved. Unfortunately we get the behavior that we let people get away with. Regulators are asleep, courts let companies weasel their way around everything, and reality doesn't care about published rules and standards.

Regulations like these are onerous. Have you ever watched a bee filling out a Dept of Ag or FDA form? Dept of Govt Efficiency will fix it.

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#109

Post by bongodongobob »

deadbabe wrote: post #105
Etheryte wrote: post #10

Here's a very straightforward guide to buying honey. If you see honey at a supermarket, no you don't, that's sugar syrup. If you see honey online, no you don't, that's sugar syrup. If you find an old dude with a small stand and a bunch of (most likely unlabelled) jars who only accepts cash, that's where you get real honey.

So I’ve never had real honey? Why doesn’t someone just sell the stuff the small dude sells in a store?

They do, parent is full of shit. Too much Instagram probably.

Re: Beekeepers halt honey awards over fraud in global supply chain

#110

Post by baobabKoodaa »

fsckboy wrote: post #83

the reason that adulterated honey is difficult to detect is that honey is just sugar syrup, and if you add more sugar syrup you'll get more sugar syrup than you started with. the mistaken belief is that there is something special about natural honey. people: it's sugar syrup, it'll give you diabetes as fast as a truckload of mountain dew. Now, I don't believe in homeopathy, perhaps you do. But that's what the honey c…

This is false. I'd be willing to wager substantial amounts of money on my ability to differentiate good acacia honey from sugar syrup.
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