The Honey Detectives Are Closing In On China’s Shady Syrup Swindlers
Detecting honey laced with sugar syrup is notoriously tricky, but a new test could provide the evidence needed to make fake honey prosecutions stick
By JONATHAN UNGOED-THOMAS and JONATHAN LEAKE at Wired UK Image: Getty Images / WIRED
Moo Pat, a Mexican beekeeper, blames China for his financial plight. There, cheap honey and sugar syrup are produced on an industrial scale and blended together by fraudsters.
Beekeepers believe this adulterated honey is responsible for saturating the market, crashing global prices and deceiving millions of customers.
“Most of the honey imported from China into Europe is blended with syrup,” says Etienne Bruneau, chairman of the honey working party at the European agricultural umbrella organization Copa-Cogeca.
“In China, they tell you if you want honey it’s one price and if you want a cheaper price you can have syrup in it.”
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