It Is IMPOSSIBLE To Distinguish Artificial (false) Honey From Natural One

[Dr. B]

Y.S. Eco Bee Farm honey is the hardest and grainiest honey I’ve ever had. For store bought raw, I like Wee Bee, not only for its taste but its really smooth, non-grainy texture:

Wee Bee Honey – Raw Honey

The Really Raw honey is good, too. I find the Wee Bee to be smoother but depending on the batch, the Really Raw can have this nice, fluffy texture and an almost Fig Newton-like taste.

This is my staple honey:

Canadian Gourmet Raw Honey | Wendell Estate Raw Honey

Discover the benefits of our award-winning, silky-smooth, raw Canadian honey. Pure white honey packaged fresh on our honey farm. Direct from our bees to you.

wendellestate.ca

And two of my other favorites:

Raw Honey - Glass Jar — Eisele’s Raw Honey

Real honey (no corn syrup, no flavorings) Truly raw (never heated beyond hive temperature) American Midwest hives (not from China or India) Glass jars (never stored in plastic) FREE Shipping throughout the contiguous U.S.

www.eiseleshoney.com

Amazon product ASIN B07YBN6V5RView: https://www.amazon.com/Altay-Extremely-Benefits-Unfiltered-Unpasteurized/dp/B07YBN6V5R

This one is nice if you prefer more floral tasting honey:

Amazon product ASIN B07G66HYM1View: https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Natural-Wildflower-Mountain-Central/dp/B07G66HYM1/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=White%2Bhoney&qid=1622501972&sr=8-2-spons&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyRjZXMzc2WTI1Mlg0JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNjk0OTM1MlJUT1dXSFNBVTMwJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAwOTY4ODMzVVJSQjBZUE5XVDRGJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ&th=1

what makes the ys eco bee farms honey so hard and grainy and so lacking in flavor to the point it tastes like youre eating plain white sugar or something? its advertised as very nutritious, and they claim on their website the more crystallized a honey is the more nutritious it is. So I got some thinking its maybe the most nutritious honey out there and its worth eating a spoonful of it a day. its not a gross or bad taste but its not good or exciting either, most caramel colored honeys taste better. are any of those honeys certified organic

 

[Jennifer]

what makes the ys eco bee farms honey so hard and grainy and so lacking in flavor to the point it tastes like youre eating plain white sugar or something? its advertised as very nutritious, and they claim on their website the more crystallized a honey is the more nutritious it is. So I got some thinking its maybe the most nutritious honey out there and its worth eating a spoonful of it a day. its not a gross or bad taste but its not good or exciting either, most caramel colored honeys taste better. are any of those honeys certified organic

I don’t know if it has to do with the way it’s handled and stored or even its age, but it reminds me of the creamed honey (made from seed honey) I’ve had, which became grainier over time. The Wendell Estate honey comes in organic, but the Eisele’s and Wee Bee are American and their websites state:

“The USDA does not (yet) have a standard for certifying honey. However, it recognizes other countries’ organic certification labels. If you see honey for sale with a USDA Organic label, that means the honey has been imported, likely from Brazil, Mexico, or Canada.”

“Wee Bee Raw Honey is a family owned and operated apiary coming from generations of beekeepers, since 1892. Our organic methods of keeping bees have produced a wild harvested, pure raw honey and healthy bees. This is the real thing, natural raw honey, straight from the hive, containing pollen, propolis and honeycomb for an award winning taste. We proudly produce, hand-pack and market our raw honey, without the middle man. A split apiary, with our Florida farm powered by solar energy and a portion of proceeds supporting non-profits for bee research. Try our raw honey and you will be supporting an American farm and American bees.”

With last two honeys, their listings state:

“Altai ranks first in the production of commercial honey in the Siberian Federal district and the fourth in Russian Federation. Now the honey which is collected in ecologically clean area of Altai Mountains recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site known as “Golden Mountains of Altai” starts spreading beyond the borders. The Pure mountain air, vast meadows and ancient traditions in the honey production are conditions which make Altai honey distinctive from many other types. Meadow honey comes from various flower types that are part of the mountain meadows. Organic, raw and unprocessed, it is rich in digestible monosaccharide, complex of vitamins, enzymes. Store at room temperature.”

“100% PURE RAW NATURAL HONEY - Honeybees can fly up to 5 miles from their hives and our beekeepers ensure the hives are far away from exposure to GMOs, pollutants and chemical agriculture. Our raw honey is unfiltered, unheated, and never pasteurized – thus leaving the natural nutrients intact.”

 

[Rinse & rePeat]

I don’t know if it has to do with the way it’s handled and stored or even its age, but it reminds me of the creamed honey (made from seed honey) I’ve had, which became grainier over time. The Wendell Estate honey comes in organic, but the Eisele’s and Wee Bee are American and their websites state:

“The USDA does not (yet) have a standard for certifying honey. However, it recognizes other countries’ organic certification labels. If you see honey for sale with a USDA Organic label, that means the honey has been imported, likely from Brazil, Mexico, or Canada.”

“Wee Bee Raw Honey is a family owned and operated apiary coming from generations of beekeepers, since 1892. Our organic methods of keeping bees have produced a wild harvested, pure raw honey and healthy bees. This is the real thing, natural raw honey, straight from the hive, containing pollen, propolis and honeycomb for an award winning taste. We proudly produce, hand-pack and market our raw honey, without the middle man. A split apiary, with our Florida farm powered by solar energy and a portion of proceeds supporting non-profits for bee research. Try our raw honey and you will be supporting an American farm and American bees.”

With last two honeys, their listings state:

“Altai ranks first in the production of commercial honey in the Siberian Federal district and the fourth in Russian Federation. Now the honey which is collected in ecologically clean area of Altai Mountains recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site known as “Golden Mountains of Altai” starts spreading beyond the borders. The Pure mountain air, vast meadows and ancient traditions in the honey production are conditions which make Altai honey distinctive from many other types. Meadow honey comes from various flower types that are part of the mountain meadows. Organic, raw and unprocessed, it is rich in digestible monosaccharide, complex of vitamins, enzymes. Store at room temperature.”

“100% PURE RAW NATURAL HONEY - Honeybees can fly up to 5 miles from their hives and our beekeepers ensure the hives are far away from exposure to GMOs, pollutants and chemical agriculture. Our raw honey is unfiltered, unheated, and never pasteurized – thus leaving the natural nutrients intact.”

I buy Wee Bee Honey too from Vitacost.com.

 

[Dr. B]

I don’t know if it has to do with the way it’s handled and stored or even its age, but it reminds me of the creamed honey (made from seed honey) I’ve had, which became grainier over time. The Wendell Estate honey comes in organic, but the Eisele’s and Wee Bee are American and their websites state:

“The USDA does not (yet) have a standard for certifying honey. However, it recognizes other countries’ organic certification labels. If you see honey for sale with a USDA Organic label, that means the honey has been imported, likely from Brazil, Mexico, or Canada.”

“Wee Bee Raw Honey is a family owned and operated apiary coming from generations of beekeepers, since 1892. Our organic methods of keeping bees have produced a wild harvested, pure raw honey and healthy bees. This is the real thing, natural raw honey, straight from the hive, containing pollen, propolis and honeycomb for an award winning taste. We proudly produce, hand-pack and market our raw honey, without the middle man. A split apiary, with our Florida farm powered by solar energy and a portion of proceeds supporting non-profits for bee research. Try our raw honey and you will be supporting an American farm and American bees.”

With last two honeys, their listings state:

“Altai ranks first in the production of commercial honey in the Siberian Federal district and the fourth in Russian Federation. Now the honey which is collected in ecologically clean area of Altai Mountains recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site known as “Golden Mountains of Altai” starts spreading beyond the borders. The Pure mountain air, vast meadows and ancient traditions in the honey production are conditions which make Altai honey distinctive from many other types. Meadow honey comes from various flower types that are part of the mountain meadows. Organic, raw and unprocessed, it is rich in digestible monosaccharide, complex of vitamins, enzymes. Store at room temperature.”

“100% PURE RAW NATURAL HONEY - Honeybees can fly up to 5 miles from their hives and our beekeepers ensure the hives are far away from exposure to GMOs, pollutants and chemical agriculture. Our raw honey is unfiltered, unheated, and never pasteurized – thus leaving the natural nutrients intact.”

acacia honey seems risky, the acacia gum is allergenic, Ray said he had effects lasting for weeks from it. i have to look into all those honeys you listed. i think the usda organic certification is reliable? isnt the problem that in the US, the environment is so toxic they cant guarantee the bees havent come in contact with harmful chemicals pesticides etc. from my understanding the reason it can come from Brazil is because it comes from the amazon rainforest there and they can certify it USDA organic because they can guarantee the bees didnt come in contact with chemicals, hormones, and all those things? but yes all the usda organic honeys I have seen say they're from canada, brazil or both.

 

[Jennifer]

acacia honey seems risky, the acacia gum is allergenic, Ray said he had effects lasting for weeks from it. i have to look into all those honeys you listed. i think the usda organic certification is reliable? isnt the problem that in the US, the environment is so toxic they cant guarantee the bees havent come in contact with harmful chemicals pesticides etc. from my understanding the reason it can come from Brazil is because it comes from the amazon rainforest there and they can certify it USDA organic because they can guarantee the bees didnt come in contact with chemicals, hormones, and all those things? but yes all the usda organic honeys I have seen say they're from canada, brazil or both.

I’m not sure we’re talking about the same species of tree or the same acacia honey? Acacia gum or “gum Arabic” comes from the Acacia senegal tree native to the Sudan region of Africa and there are two varieties of acacia honey that I’m aware of. The Acacia honey I consume comes from the floral nectar of the black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) or “false acacia” native to the eastern US and is said to be the least allergenic of the honeys. The other acacia honey comes from not only the floral nectar but also the extrafloral nectar of the Acacia mangium or brown salwood so I suppose it could potentially be allergenic:

Acacia mangium honey, made from a real acacia tree

In the US is known as Black locust honey, in Europe as Acacia honey or Robinia honey, the real acacia honey, aka Mangium honey, is produced in Malaysia. ❤️

healthywithhoney.com

I’m personally not too concerned with whether or not a honey is certified organic but even if I were, I can’t really answer your question because I don’t necessarily trust the USDA’s standards when it comes to honey (or in general), for some of the reasons explained here:

USDA Organic Honey – What Does It Mean?

USDA Certified Organic Honey: what it really means. Includes the lack of official regulations, the recommendations often followed in the US, and what it means on imported honey.

brookfieldfarmhoney.wordpress.com

The Truth about Organic Honey - Foxhound Bee Company

Learn the truth about organic honey. There is a difference between heated and raw, imported versus domestic and USDA Organic Honey.

www.foxhoundbeecompany.com

 

[Lollipop2]

Y.S. Eco Bee Farm honey is the hardest and grainiest honey I’ve ever had. For store bought raw, I like Wee Bee, not only for its taste but its really smooth, non-grainy texture:

Wee Bee Honey – Raw Honey

The Really Raw honey is good, too. I find the Wee Bee to be smoother but depending on the batch, the Really Raw can have this nice, fluffy texture and an almost Fig Newton-like taste.

This is my staple honey:

Canadian Gourmet Raw Honey | Wendell Estate Raw Honey

Discover the benefits of our award-winning, silky-smooth, raw Canadian honey. Pure white honey packaged fresh on our honey farm. Direct from our bees to you.

wendellestate.ca

And two of my other favorites:

Raw Honey - Glass Jar — Eisele’s Raw Honey

Real honey (no corn syrup, no flavorings) Truly raw (never heated beyond hive temperature) American Midwest hives (not from China or India) Glass jars (never stored in plastic) FREE Shipping throughout the contiguous U.S.

www.eiseleshoney.com

Amazon product ASIN B07YBN6V5RView: https://www.amazon.com/Altay-Extremely-Benefits-Unfiltered-Unpasteurized/dp/B07YBN6V5R

This one is nice if you prefer more floral tasting honey:

Amazon product ASIN B07G66HYM1View: https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Natural-Wildflower-Mountain-Central/dp/B07G66HYM1/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=White%2Bhoney&qid=1622501972&sr=8-2-spons&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyRjZXMzc2WTI1Mlg0JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNjk0OTM1MlJUT1dXSFNBVTMwJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAwOTY4ODMzVVJSQjBZUE5XVDRGJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ&th=1

These are some great suggestions @Jennifer! Thank you.

 

[Regina]

da'best!
The beekeeper has the permission to harvest the honey from bees in a protected black mangrove "forest". The honey has a saltiness that is so so delicious.

 

[Jennifer]

My pleasure, @Lollipop2! :)

Ooh...that honey sounds yummy, @Regina! I’ve had quite a few honeys but never one with a saltiness to it so I’m excited to try it. Thanks for sharing it! :)

 

[Lollipop2]

da'best!
The beekeeper has the permission to harvest the honey from bees in a protected black mangrove "forest". The honey has a saltiness that is so so delicious.

That does look amazing! Thank you for sharing.

 

[863127]

This is in stores in my town. Seems good. Anyone suspicious of it?

Organic Raw Honey – Heavenly Organics

Deep in the forests of India, wild bees produce a honey that is untouched by pesticides, antibiotics, genetically modified crops, and pollutants. Once gathered from the hives, this honey is gently processed, preserving its naturally-occurring vitamins and minerals. The result is our line of 100%...

heavenlyorganics.com

Wild and Free – Heavenly Organics

Learn about Heavenly Organics honey - always naturally-occurring, sustainably sourced, pesticide- and pollutant-free. Harvested from wild beehives in Northern and Central India, our honey is a force for good for bees, the environment and you.

heavenlyorganics.com

 

[Jennifer]

This is in stores in my town. Seems good. Anyone suspicious of it?

Organic Raw Honey – Heavenly Organics

Deep in the forests of India, wild bees produce a honey that is untouched by pesticides, antibiotics, genetically modified crops, and pollutants. Once gathered from the hives, this honey is gently processed, preserving its naturally-occurring vitamins and minerals. The result is our line of 100%...

heavenlyorganics.com

Wild and Free – Heavenly Organics

Learn about Heavenly Organics honey - always naturally-occurring, sustainably sourced, pesticide- and pollutant-free. Harvested from wild beehives in Northern and Central India, our honey is a force for good for bees, the environment and you.

heavenlyorganics.com

I bought the Heavenly Organics white and acacia honey a few months ago and questioned if I had gotten a bad batch because they were honestly terrible. I didn’t think I could ever dislike a raw honey, but they didn’t even taste like honey. They had this really odd and strong mesquite-like flavor. I had someone else try them to make sure it wasn’t just me and they agreed that they were disgusting.

 

[863127]

I bought the Heavenly Organics white and acacia honey a few months ago and questioned if I had gotten a bad batch because they were honestly terrible. I didn’t think I could ever dislike a raw honey, but they didn’t even taste like honey. They had this really odd and strong mesquite-like flavor. I had someone else try them to make sure it wasn’t just me and they agreed that they were disgusting.

Their Neem honey I've bought has always been crystallized, solid, but recently all the jars of that I've seen on shelves are liquid like their acacia honey. That's what made me a little suspicious -- considering the turmoil in India with COVID problems, maybe the beekeepers are cutting some corners to make more profits, heating it and/or adulterating it. (I feel petty even considering it though.) Or maybe it's a normal seasonal thing in India for the Neem tree flowers to change the ratio of glucose and fructose?

 

[Jennifer]

Their Neem honey I've bought has always been crystallized, solid, but recently all the jars of that I've seen on shelves are liquid like their acacia honey. That's what made me a little suspicious -- considering the turmoil in India with COVID problems, maybe the beekeepers are cutting some corners to make more profits, heating it and/or adulterating it. (I feel petty even considering it though.) Or maybe it's a normal seasonal thing in India for the Neem tree flowers to change the ratio of glucose and fructose?

Huh, the acacia I had was solid. Same with their white honey. I could see seasonality being a factor, but I wonder if it has more to do with the age of the honey? From my understanding, it’s normal for raw honey to crystallize over time, even the higher fructose honeys like acacia. Maybe the honey you’ve seen recently was collected this year? I’ve contacted Heavenly Organics before to ask about how they process their sugar and they were prompt and very forthcoming about their practices so you could always write them and see what they have to say and then decide from there if they seem trustworthy to you?

 

[863127]

Maybe I shouldn't have said I'm suspicious; I'm being a little tongue in cheek saying that. When I saw the neem honey as liquid as it was I imagined maybe with what's going on in India recently it was an unusual exception to the processing methods to temporarily make more money. And I'm tongue in cheek suspicious because I wouldn't blame them much for it. What I was really interested about -- related to the organic honey standards in different countries -- is how easy it'd be for a business like that, producing in rural areas of India and selling internationally, to change their methods during a situation that's bad for business without any third party doing anything about it. I don't mean I think that company's not trustworthy. But I read the articles posted about the US allowing an organic certification label on honey if it's certified in the country it's imported from according to that country's standards, and I'd be surprised if India has strict regulations about it, and so not to say that Heavenly Organics did this, but a business in rural India probably could change methods to be more profitable during an unusual bad situation and it wouldn't be a problem. The cultural context affecting the regulatory situation in different countries is interesting. Foods from around the world are commonly available in modern cities nowadays like historically would've only been available to royalty; that's one of the wonders of modern society easily taken for granted, and the more easy to take it for granted in a culture the more of an expectation of regulation of it there is too, and so with the difference of the attitudes about those in the US or rural India being somewhat opposite there's a lot of room for differences of priorities. You know, if people in rural India are having problems with money because of COVID, maybe cut corners a little temporarily, and the people in the US being careful about which organic honey they want to buy, they'll be okay. But maybe that's a dumb scenario for me to imagine because people in those villages wouldn't get the extra profits.

 

[Vinny]

I think buying organic from the US is another assurance. They have to pass inspections and the US inspectors make their rounds regularly, unlike Mexico's organic where only 10% of their organics get a visit. Have you found out anything else on the subject Vinny?

According the clever dude from the video, 80-90% of the honey on the market is adulterated. He dives quite deep in the matter.
It is impossible to determine if it`s natural relying on subjective factors like taste, smell, color, structure etc. Honey is very, very easy to make artificially and the end product will pass all tests and get certification.
He states, the only way we can be sure if the honey is real is to buy it directly from a farmer who we know very well.

 

[Rinse & rePeat]

According the clever dude from the video, 80-90% of the honey on the market is adulterated. He dives quite deep in the matter.
It is impossible to determine if it`s natural relying on subjective factors like taste, smell, color, structure etc. Honey is very, very easy to make artificially and the end product will pass all tests and get certification.
He states, the only way we can be sure if the honey is real is to buy it directly from a farmer who we know very well.

Isn't that sad?

 

[Vinny]

Isn't that sad?

It`s not sad. It`s a catastrophe.
The real dark times are now.
It`s getting harder and harder to find true food, true doctor, true lawyer, true friends, true life partner etc.
A colleague of mine went to a dentist recently. She told him that ALL his upper teeth are irreversibly rotten and need to be taken out and replaced with expensive implants. ALL teeth.
He was very upset of course, but he decided to go on anyway. However, in order to avoid the extra cost here, he went back to our home country to finish the job there.
It turned out, that ONLY ONE of his upper teeth was sick, and can be treated and saved. ONLY ONE.
So, you get my point. But we shouldn`t give up no matter what. We must keep supporting each other and internet is a great tool for that.

 

[Rinse & rePeat]

It`s not sad. It`s a catastrophe.
The real dark times are now.
It`s getting harder and harder to find true food, true doctor, true lawyer, true friends, true life partner etc.
A colleague of mine went to a dentist recently. She told him that ALL his upper teeth are irreversibly rotten and need to be taken out and replaced with expensive implants. ALL teeth.
He was very upset of course, but he decided to go on anyway. However, in order to avoid the extra cost here, he went back to our home country to finish the job there.
It turned out, that ONLY ONE of his upper teeth was sick, and can be treated and saved. ONLY ONE.
So, you get my point. But we shouldn`t give up no matter what. We must keep supporting each other and internet is a great tool for that.

Wow! I read what you said out loud and my husband said, "Well said Sir! You are spot on!" This forum is so full of intelligent and wonderful people. We are all so lucky to be bonding together through such precarious times. Thanks Vinnie for that cautionary tale!

 

[Vinny]

Wow! I read what you said out loud and my husband said, "Well said Sir! You are spot on!" This forum is so full of intelligent and wonderful people. We are all so lucky to be bonding together through such precarious times. Thanks Vinnie for that cautionary tale!

 

[Rinse & rePeat]

Ha!