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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

#61

Post by foolfoolz »

zug_zug wrote: post #38

I think the FDA should build towards mass food analysis. To sell something en masse you should have to put down a deposit, and the FDA should do an annual analysis of your food (via mass spectometry) from samples from the food store. They should mix dozens of samples from different states to get good coverage. Should you fail (illegal pesticides, ingredients differ than label, too much lead, whatever) then you lose y…

we already have this in the FDA. it’s just isolated to nutrient labels for most foods. the deposit is your business. failing a random annual FDA inspection is already extremely financially impactful

what you’re looking for is deeper analysis than nutrition labels. this is actually something small local brands start with. they pay for private “certifications” like organic, non gmo, etc.

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

#62

Post by [deleted] »

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.

[deleted]

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

#63

Post by Aurornis »

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.

This isn’t true at all in the United States at least.

Sugar syrup or even honey adulterated with sugar syrup behaves differently. I’ve had some cheap generic brand bottles that flowed too easily, dissolved too quickly, and never crystallized. Probably sugar syrup.

But I haven’t seen this once since over a decade ago in my college days when I shopped at some questionable neighborhood supermarkets.

Everything I’ve bought from local supermarkets and chains like Costco has felt, looked, flowed, tasted, and crystallized like real honey.

You should probably be more suspicious about those roadside shops, too. With the rise of “farmers’ markets” as a side hustle you can no longer tell what’s what just by the fact that they’re operating out of a stand and taking cash. Around here, a lot of the “farmers’ market” and even roadside stand operators are reselling products they get from other entrepreneurs who sell them the produce, honey, and other goods. There’s a group of people here who have roadside stands with signs spray painted by hand to look like mom and pop DIY operations, which tricks people until they realize those exact signs are in 100s of locations across the state. It’s just another business preying on people’s lack of trust in institutions but implicit trust in anything that feels mom and pop, just like your comment implies.

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

#64

Post by Aurornis »

Michelangelo11 wrote: post #5

Feels like wherever you turn, you see a high-trust society disintegrating into a low-trust one.

Actually I think the opposite is true in many cases. Food quality and safety standards are higher than ever.

This stuff sticks out because it’s getting caught and called out. There was a time when information spread slowly, tracking supply chains was basically impossible, and many businesses would do shady things because they knew they were unlikely to get caught.

Now we can sample things like honey with lab equipment that is basically magic compared to technology 50 years ago, so these things are getting caught. We also have the internet to share stories, so they’re getting seen.

So while people are becoming more aware, I think these things are actually better than in the past.

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

#67

Post by syndicatedjelly »

Kapura wrote: post #3

wow, it's almost like cutting taxes and disassembling the regulatory state creates bad outcomes anywhere it's profitable.

What are you talking about? None of those things have happened in the EU where this fraud is being discussed, in fact it’s the opposite over there

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

#68

Post by 7thpower »

yumraj wrote: post #59
skylurk wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honey supply chains are opaque and global, plus the incentives to cheat are clearly there and it's hard to definitively prove a batch was not adulterated. I'd say it's fair to be suspicious. That said, this old article seems to think its not as common a problem as you would expect: https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2011/11/25/142659547/re...

We buy from Costco and most/all of it crystallizes after some time. Not sure if that makes it good honey, but there’s that.

The first thing that popped into my head after reading this was the large container of Kirkland honey I have.

I thought: “Costco wouldn’t lie to me? Would they?”

Now I must go and find out.

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

#69

Post by hollerith »

7thpower wrote: post #68
yumraj wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We buy from Costco and most/all of it crystallizes after some time. Not sure if that makes it good honey, but there’s that.

The first thing that popped into my head after reading this was the large container of Kirkland honey I have. I thought: “Costco wouldn’t lie to me? Would they?” Now I must go and find out.

Just because they're not lying doesn't mean they've done the work of finding out whether the honey is pure.

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

#70

Post by mmooss »

hackernewds wrote: post #9
Kapura wrote: post #3

wow, it's almost like cutting taxes and disassembling the regulatory state creates bad outcomes anywhere it's profitable.

you mean interfering with the free market

Regulation is necessary to a free market. Otherwise powerful forces in the market will make it non-free for everyone else or make it non-free for honest business by forcing them to do illicit things to be competitive.
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