General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums'Honey Laundering' Is An International Problem
Food-safety experts have found that much of the honey sold in the United States isn't actually honey, but a concoction of corn or rice syrup, malt sweeteners or "jiggery" (cheap, unrefined sugar), plus a small amount of genuine honey, according to Wired UK.
Worse, some honey much of which is imported from Asia has been found to contain toxins like lead and other heavy metals, as well as drugs like chloramphenicol, an antibiotic, according to a Department of Justice news release.
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A possible solution to the honey-provenance quandary has come from an unlikely source: astronomy. A laser isotope ratio-meter was developed to search for methane gas on Mars, according to Wired UK. But that same technology can be used to analyze the smoke given off by heated honey, olive oil or other food to find its unique carbon "fingerprint" and determine its origin.
A sample of honey, for example, can be matched to the flowers of a specific geographic region through the laser analysis...
(Read more: http://www.livescience.com/28039-honey-laundering.html#ixzz2OHSE63De)
Exultant Democracy
(6,594 posts)bvar22
(39,909 posts)....or at the roadside stand.
There is even less oversight than at the supermarkets.
Unfortunately, there ARE unscrupulous vendors at Framers Markets,
and times are hard and getting harder.
Many BeeKeepers also feed their Bees Corn Syrup
even during the "Honey Flow" to increase the end product.
This is especially true in High Density yards where there more than a few hives.
Some "Organic" BeeKeepers we KNOW see no problem with this practice.
As far as my wife & I are concerned, that end product is NOT "Pure Organic Honey".
---bvar22 & Starkraven
small scale, low density, natural BeeKeepers.
Starry Messenger
(32,342 posts)Honey is one of the few things I'm picky about, I didn't know about the corn syrup trick.
(When I was little I used to help out a local beekeeper who treated me like his adopted grand-daughter. Great memories.)
Paul E Ester
(952 posts)Because you cannot control where the bees roam. They could be getting nectar from a tree just sprayed with a pesticide on someone else's land.
Disconcerting to hear how crappy (quality) a product it is.
snagglepuss
(12,704 posts)clearly indicates that is just a romantic notion. Any clues about appraising local sellers?
Javaman
(62,443 posts)not just for the obvious reasons stated above, but local honey also will help with your allergies.
And help the local beekeepers.
talkingmime
(2,173 posts)It costs a little more, but damn is it good. My favorite is the buckwheat.
olddots
(10,237 posts)The world is becoming a William Gibson novel and we better start paying attention .
backscatter712
(26,355 posts)There's a lot of "olive oil" that isn't - at best, isn't fresh and virgin, more likely, isn't made from olives, and often isn't made of things that you should eat at all.
Here's one link...
http://www.foodrenegade.com/your-extravirgin-olive-oil-fake/