Honey laundering: a threat to honey brands
Yes, “honey laundering.” A fascinating (and rather disturbing) report in the Seattle Post Intelligencer describes how large quantities of honey imported into the US are criminally “laundered” through third-party countries to evade import regulations, duties and fees. Laundering also hides those responsible for shipping substandard honey to the US. Some imported shipments have been diluted with sugar water or corn syrup. Others have been contaminated with pesticides or antibiotics.
An issue of brand trust
The quality and provenance of imported honey is important because 40% of the honey consumed in the US comes from overseas. On the brand front, honey laundering has created a major issue of brand trust for the US brands that use imported honey to fill our supermarket shelves. How can those brands protect their customers from potentially adulterated, tainted, untraceable honey . . . or worse?
The risk to the public is very real, according to one US inspector.
Honey from countries with very few bees
Investigators often suspect exporters in China as the main culprits in laundering their honey through such countries as India, Thailand, Russia and Vietnam.
Honey imported directly from China pays higher US duties, including anti-dumping fees. Laundered honey is charged far less, or is imported tariff-free.
From the report:
The U.S. imported 237 million pounds of raw honey last year. But honey brokers, bee experts and foreign customs officials say they’re suspicious that seven of the top 12 countries appear to be exporting far more honey than their domestic bees produce or their export agencies acknowledge. These countries include Vietnam, India, Thailand, Russia, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia.
Countries that have few if any commercial beekeepers, such as Singapore, are now exporting significant quantities of honey, records show. That includes the Grand Bahamas, which has been listed as the country of origin for honey shipped into Houston, authorities say.
“I have a difficult time seeing the Grand Bahamas as a major honey producer,” said David Westervelt, a Florida state apiculture inspector. “It’s an island. You move bees on there and they’ll die.”
Is your favorite brand of honey protecting you?
Leading brands of honey carefully test the honey they import, and reject substandard shipments. Testing, certification and quality control will be primary drivers of brand trust going forward.
However, as the PI report notes, many large US honey packers rely on the FDA to do quality control inspections on imported honey at the point of entry. They assume the FDA will catch fraudulent or adulterated shipments. Unfortunately, the PI report found that the FDA inspects very few shipments.
Strategically, US brands of honey would benefit from a stronger stance by US regulatory authorities. Honey laundering is a global crime. Honey packers in the US are the first victims.
“Someday, some really harmful honey will be shipped into this country, and a lot of people will get sick or worse — and then the government will do something about it,” one inspector said. “We shouldn’t have to wait for people to get sick.”
