Tainted honey

[James48843]

how's your honey?

A third or more of all the honey consumed in the U.S. is likely to have been smuggled in from China and may be tainted with illegal antibiotics and heavy metals. A Food Safety News investigation has documented that millions of pounds of honey banned as unsafe in dozens of countries are being imported and sold here in record quantities. Experts interviewed by Food Safety News say some of the largest and most long-established U.S. honey packers are knowingly buying mislabeled, transshipped or possibly altered honey so they can sell it cheaper than those companies who demand safety, quality and rigorously inspected honey.

This is a serious issue because China has a monumental problem with its honey industry. A bee epidemic in China several years ago led beekeepers there to use an antibiotic that the U.S. FDA has banned in food and that has been linked to DNA damage in children. And as FSN observes, though China has a state-of-the-art honey processing industry, its beekeeping has not kept up -- resulting, for example, in some Chinese honey being contaminated with lead from the use of improper storage containers.

Even worse, Chinese honey brokers have been known to create counterfeit product made of "a mix of sugar water, malt sweeteners, corn or rice syrup, jaggery , barley malt sweetener or other additives with a bit of actual honey." A label is slapped on the container and the adulterated honey is shipped through another country -- for the most part, India -- before finally making its way to the US.


snip.........

For all of the above reasons, honey from India is already banned in the European Union, and it's supposed to be illegal to import food into the U.S. that's been banned in other countries. However, the FDA response has been muted.

http://www.grist.org/food-safety/2011-08-18-honey-laundering-tainted-counterfeit-from-china-in-US

 

[PessOptimist]

Obviously, we need a honey commission to check this out.

Maybe a cabinet position. At least three SES, a couple dozen GS 15s many more lesser grades and some contracted minions to stamp paperwork.

OR, we could let the FDA do what it is supposed to do. But this is China, so be careful not to **** them off.

The solution is to feed your kids sugar or high fructose corn sugar. Or maybe feed them less sugar. Give them a lot of Aspertame. That could allow you to cut down on that prozac dose.

Thank You Jim, once again, for pointing out to us we are all doomed unless we are not doomed. It also gives another excuse for the slackers to do nothing. "My mommy gave me Chinese honey"

 

[KevinD]

Obviously, we need a honey commission to check this out.

Maybe a cabinet position. At least three SES, a couple dozen GS 15s many more lesser grades and some contracted minions to stamp paperwork.

OR, we could let the FDA do what it is supposed to do. But this is China, so be careful not to **** them off.

The solution is to feed your kids sugar or high fructose corn sugar. Or maybe feed them less sugar. Give them a lot of Aspertame. That could allow you to cut down on that prozac dose.

Thank You Jim, once again, for pointing out to us we are all doomed unless we are not doomed. It also gives another excuse for the slackers to do nothing. "My mommy gave me Chinese honey"

 

[konakathy]

That's why I avoid, whenever possible, to buy ANYTHING from China.

Here on the Big Island, we have a great organic honey, expensive, but healthy and good. www.bigislandbees.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZjosn2u1gA&ob=av2e

 

[Intrepid_Timer]

Thank You Jim, once again, for pointing out to us we are all doomed unless we are not doomed. It also gives another excuse for the slackers to do nothing. "My mommy gave me Chinese honey"

I still can't believe my mother let me drink from the water hose. She should have known it would make my hair fallout and my waistline increase later in life................

 

[Sensei]

Funny, the part about China moving the honey through India before selling it to the developed world. There was a similar scandal in Japan last year, when it was revealed that some of the bamboo shoots China was selling to Japan were actually from North Korea.

I've been avoiding Chinese food products for years. I wish I could afford to avoid all their products, but some things are just so cheap (like press-wood, assemble-it-yourself furniture)...

 

[Show-me]

As a bee keeper I know what James reports is true. I have read many articles about this subject and the unregulated honey product have some nasty things in them. They got caught and then figured out how to back door it through another country. Not legal or honest.

Support your local honey producers, LOCAL, not Sue Bee or any other mass packer that buys honey from all over the country or world and blends it together. They blended mass produced honey comes from pollinators that "treat" their bees to the maximum degree with antibiotics and pesticides to control disease and parasites from trucking them unnaturally all over the country.

Look for local raw or all natural honey that is not processed.

 

[Show-me]

Know this, honey comb is a natural chemical sponge and when you treat your colonies with chemical to control parisites and diseases the comb/wax draws in the compounds and hold it there. Next the honey bees store the honey in the same comb/wax cells and the chemical is allowed to transfer to the honey. Same thing as using your Round Up bottle or gas can to store your milk in. Ewwww.

 

[Buster]

SM..I find honey bees fascinating..I walk amongst them as they gather pollen from my flowering shrubs and trees, I know they are harmless little workers that could care less about me..so therfore, I know I need not to fear being stung..

Question old friend, Is it true that allergies can be somewhat controlled if you eat the raw honey of your local bees? (Which I do enjoy eating as for all my sweetener needs)

 

[Show-me]

SM..I find honey bees fascinating..I walk amongst them as they gather pollen from my flowering shrubs and trees, I know they are harmless little workers that could care less about me..so therfore, I know I need not to fear being stung..

Question old friend, Is it true that allergies can be somewhat controlled if you eat the raw honey of your local bees? (Which I do enjoy eating as for all my sweetener needs)

You are correct that workers are virtually harmless when they are out foraging. Stinging is a defense act, i.e. accidentally squish one you get stung. Invade their home, you get stung. Go near a home that is being repeatedly harassed by a skunk, coon, or bear, you get stung.

As far as it helping with allergies, no clinical evidence suggest that it work, but the placebo effect does rule and sometimes believing is enough. Sorry. I believe it has logic and my dad believes it works.

Tip: Honey is brain food, fructose, 38%, and glucose, 31%, do not have to be broken down like cane sugar, sucrose. Glucose is consumed by the brain and the brain needs 125 to 150 grams a day. Honey is a great source and contains trace minerals, vitamins, and amino acids.

 

[SteelSaving]

Local honey is best and it's all I've bought for years.

And who woulda thunk it? I thought China was our friend... :suspicious:

 

[alevin]

Local honey is best.

Agreed. Only honey I buy is from our farmer's market. I'm working to make my home space more bee-friendly all the time. discontinued yard service (including chemical weed control) when last recession hit-was about that time I realized I had not been kind to bee-friends for the couple years had someone else doing yardcare, still atoning-very few honeybees around, or bumblebees either for that matter. But the culinary herbs I'm growing (NOT "herb"), have been providing bee-food for little native bees and honeybees for past couple months. Lots of little native bees every day all over the marjoram and oreganos, plus a handful of honeybees. The bumblebees are more interested in a handful of native evening primroses that volunteered to grow in my garden, starting last year. No fear of getting stung here. they're all way too busy getting food from an chemical-free source.

 

[James48843]

 

[Mista_Magee]

That's why I avoid, whenever possible, to buy ANYTHING from China.

Here on the Big Island, we have a great organic honey, expensive, but healthy and good. www.bigislandbees.com

konakathy,

Which flavor/type of the Big Island honeys taste more like standard honey? I wouldn't want to order one that is too exotic or strange for my taste buds and don't care to experiment yet. Just want to replace my standard grocery store honey with one from bigisland bees. I recently purchased honey at our local Sprouts Farmers Market but kept thinking about your comments on this honey after checking out their website. Can't stomach the thought of eating regular ole honey after reading James' post.

 

[Handballer]

I have been buying my honey from Costco for years and I like it. Silverbow clams its locally produced.

 

[Mista_Magee]

I have been buying my honey from Costco for years and I like it. Silverbow clams its locally produced.

Thanks for the reply. Bumping the thread for konakathy.