Turkey is making fake honey on an alarming scale

Muscat Daily

16-02-2025

Istanbul, Turkey – Turkey is one of the key players in the global honey market. With annual production of 115,000 tonnes of honey, the country is the world's second-largest supplier after China, followed by Ethiopia, Iran and India.
The Turkish honey sector has an annual volume of about €270mn (US$283.4mn), according to estimates, with Germany and the United States being the biggest importers of honey from Turkey.
Adulterated honey
But the sector faces a crisis because of counterfeit Turkish honey, although the actual extent of counterfeit honey production in the country remains unclear.
Police have confiscated several tonnes of the adulterated product in recent months for a total value of about €25mn.
One raid in the capital Ankara in September 2024 found 8,150 tonnes of glucose, fructose and sugar, along with 100,000 labels for different brands of honey.
Honey is often adulterated with sugar syrup. But if a product contains artificial flavours, colours, sweeteners, glucose, corn syrup or artificial honeycomb, it can't legally be sold as honey.
If it is, it's referred to as counterfeit or adulterated honey – which is a violation of labelling laws.
In the last quarter of 2024, the Turkish ministry of agriculture released lists indicating that 43 producers in Turkey had adulterated honey.
Ankara is seen as the centre of this industry; the majority of production facilities are located there. The ministry says two of the manufacturers distribute their products through big supermarket chains.
Damage to Turkey's image
The industry is alarmed. Producers fear that Turkey's reputation on the international market will suffer significant damage or has already been harmed. They are calling for state intervention, stricter regulations and deterrent penalties for producers of counterfeit honey.
Ziya Sahin, the president of the Turkish Beekeepers' Association, holds the Ministry of Agriculture responsible. He wants to see more inspections and higher penalties.
'The problem is the lack of regulation. Our beekeepers are angry, and they ask why we're not doing something to stop it. But we have no authority to inspect,' Sahin told DW. 'I'm not even allowed to ask street sellers whether their honey is real or not.'
A meeting of the International Federation of Beekeepers' Associations is due to be held in Turkey this year. Sahin says they are in close contact with their international partners.
'As in other parts of the world, there is counterfeit honey in Turkey. We can't deny that. But we don't want Turkey to be known as a paradise for fake honey. We won't accept that,' Sahin insisted.
Fake honey in China, Europe
Counterfeit honey isn't just a Turkish problem, though, those involved in the industry emphasise.
'There's fake honey in China and Europe, too,' said Can Sezen, the managing director of Anavarza Bal, one of the country's leading honey producers. 'It would be unfair to claim that it only affects Turkey. That said, Turks are particularly inventive about such matters.'
Manufacturers of counterfeit honey closely monitor when the state authorities are ordering inspections, Sezen said, and then they scale back production in a targeted way.
'You can find these products in every supermarket. The revelations must continue – like the lists released by the ministry. Our population needs to be aware of these fake products,' Sezen said.
One significant reason for the increase in counterfeit honey is Turkey's economic situation. Fake honey costs only a fifth as much as the real thing, selling in Turkey for about €1.60 per kilogram.
The price for real honey can be as high as €8 a kilogram.
The adulterated product is more affordable for many consumers – an important consideration in times of high inflation.
And as for exports, experts say customs checks aren't sufficient for detecting counterfeit honey meaning that fake Turkish honey could already be in supermarkets abroad.
'It may be that counterfeit honey is first exported illegally to Arab countries then shipped on to other parts of the world,' Ziya Sahin said.
There are already indications that counterfeit honey has found its way to Europe. In January 2024, French authorities confiscated 13 tonnes of honey laced with Viagra, also known as 'erectile honey'. According to official reports, it originated with illegal supply chains in Turkey, Tunisia and Thailand.
The severity of the problem is illustrated by figures from the European Anti-Fraud Office.
In 2023, the agency uncovered huge violations involving honey imported to the European Union. Almost half, or 46%, of the samples it examined were adulterated.
Out of 15 samples of honey from Turkey, 14 of them were counterfeit.
DW