Supermarket honey

[Do224]

What’s the deal with supermarket honey…why is it considered an inferior product? I’m not suggesting it isn’t, it certainly doesn’t taste as good to me…but what causes the difference?

Take Rowse honey for instance…I have some in the cupboard and I just checked the label. No mention of any additives and it suggests on the label that it comes from beehives in Oxfordshire…so what’s the difference?

 

[RichardK]

Take Rowse honey for instance…I have some in the cupboard and I just checked the label. No mention of any additives and it suggests on the label that it comes from beehives in Oxfordshire…so what’s the difference?

Looking at their website they do produce some honey from UK sources - Rowse Heather Max (British heather honey) and British Honey. Additionally they say:

..."sell honey that is blended from a variety of countries that is very popular with UK consumers. Rowse specially selects honeys from all over the world, from all major honey-producing continents including South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Oceania, to pack a pure and natural honey that is consistent in flavour, colour, aroma and texture all year round."

FAQs | Rowse Honey

 

[Wilco]

I suspect it's linked to processing. I asked them for details on what their process ws and they refused to tell me, claiming it to be commercially sensitive. They deny ultrafiltration but would not answer anything regarding microfiltration, temperature or use of diatomaceous earth.

The processes themselves are well known and documented so I suspect the issue is likely that they are worried about reputational damage if the processing method they use becomes public knowledge.

 

[PeaBee]

As has been said on here before Honey is one of the most adulterated food globally because it is very difficult to test to see if it has been cut with syrup. In addition the supply chain is for imported honey is long often passing through many intermediaries and international boundaries.
Chinese honey, which makes up a large portion of honey imports from what I understand it is extracted as nectar from the hives by beekeepers, then local brokers centralis it and "dry" it to lower the water content before blending it and exporting.
This webinar explains a lot
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/...Md0rQPrPCW6wzpxAFB2itEZcyLx2Tosfywoa-Nv2-ziv0
However it meets a need that domestic supply can not and is a totally different product and market to what local beekeepers produce, so is not worth getting to excited about really.

 

[Nick Lang]

I do wonder at the lack of transparency within the large scale commercial agri-business sector.....a lot of the issues come down to trust.....do you trust the product ....do you trust the company behind the product.....and invariably I find I do not.....they are driven by margins which leads to a race to the bottom for price, this inevitably leads to a sacrifice in product quality (and corner cutting).

I am a vegetarian.... it's a personal choice.....I have absolutely nothing against eating meat that is reared in a decent and proper manner, my neighbour has a herd of Welsh Black cattle...they are grass fed and he maintains the herd well...he cares about his animals and he treats them with respect all their life untill slaughter....compare that with the way large scale meat producing firms care and treat their animals....you definitely get an inferior product at the end.

Now I know bee keeping is slightly different...just saying.

Not trying to be preachy I promise

 

[pargyle]

If I recall correctly, Rowse have stopped purchasing honey from UK sources ....? I may be wrong so I'm happy to be corrected ... sure I read it somewhere ...

Somerfords Blog said it as well ...

https://beekeepingforum.co.uk/threa...nd-the-year-starts-to-turn.51972/#post-801902

 

[Nick Lang]

There was quite an interesting documentary on Netflix called "Rotten".....there was an episode about honey and how it gets imported...about how the industry is regulated (or not) and about how the Chinese suppliers go to great lengths to adulterate honey illegally....it was worth a watch. Particularly fascinating was the section about using DNA analytics to identify the origin of honey.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

If I recall correctly, Rowse have stopped purchasing honey from UK sources ....? I may be wrong

You're not - I recall the announcement, but haven't been able to find the reference yet

 

[Erichalfbee]

Food for thought
https://latinhoneyshop.com/blogs/news/11-shocking-facts-about-supermarket-honey

 

[JamezF]

What’s the deal with supermarket honey…why is it considered an inferior product? I’m not suggesting it isn’t, it certainly doesn’t taste as good to me…but what causes the difference?

My understanding is that there are justifiable concerns that where honey is being sourced from Asia in particular that it may well not actually be 100% honey, having been mixed with products such as corn syrup, and that it may contain residues from pesticides or other sources that are not allowed in food products in the UK. In some cases there aren't even any viable tests to check (adulteration with
corn syrup is undetectable at the moment as far as I recall). Honey imports from some countries have been banned which has resulted in something of an arms race to render the actual source untraceable, allowing it to be shipped via other countries and disguise its real origin.

It's not a problem that anyone (in a position to do so) seems to care about fixing though. It's long been known that way more Manuka honey is sold than is produced for example, but nothing seems to change. Quite possibly even the Manuka honey producers don't want to rock the boat because whilst it might increase the price of their product in the long term, in the short term it would probably damage their market through loss of confidence.

My personal feeling is that where honey sold in a supermarket is not labelled specifically as being from the UK or the EU (rather than the completely useless "blend of EU and non-EU honeys", for example), there's actually no telling what it really is, nor even if it would be considered safe to eat.

James

 

[blackcloud]

Plus there's the inevitable backlash from small sellers
If you undercut someone all they can do is kick and stamp claiming your product is inferior.
It's all that they have left to throw at you.
Not saying we do of course...