Russian parliamentarians decided to deal with the “wrong bees”

The law will prescribe what honey is

Parliamentarians have found a way to bring counterfeit honey to clean water. Deputies and senators want to define honey in the law. The parliamentarians are sure that this is the only way to understand what is in the bank on the counter of the store: a product from a working bee or a sweet fake from confectioners.

– 60-70% of what is called honey on the shelves is not. This falsification has nothing to do with beekeeping, and was created not by bees, but by unscrupulous people with the help of ordinary sugar, food additives and flavor enhancers, – said State Duma Vice Speaker Sergei Neverov.

The problem of honey fakes was attended to in the Cabinet. On March 29, at a meeting of the State Commission for Combating Illicit Trafficking in Industrial Products, Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov noted that Russia is one of the five largest producers in the world, with a total volume of up to 70,000 tons of honey per year. But much of what lovers of valuable natural sweets buy is a product from the “wrong bees”.

“According to the results of a study by Roskachestvo in consumer markets, over 20% of selected samples do not meet the requirements for natural honey. And in half of the cases, the type of honey in the package does not match what is stated on the label. That is, cheap honey collected from sunflower is presented as more expensive honey from acacia or sweet clover. This is a direct deception of consumers, ”the press service of the Ministry of Industry and Trade quotes Manturov as saying.

According to legislators, the reason for such violations is the lack of a clear definition of honey. Moreover, the criteria for identifying a natural product from a bee are also not defined. The honey crisis should be resolved by amendments to the law “On beekeeping”, developed by senators Mayorov and Mitin.

If the bill is adopted, after it, Rosstandart will write GOST, with the help of which the regulatory authorities will be able to identify real honey without letting counterfeit honey into the market.

Chairman of the Union of Russian Beekeepers Valery Kapunin told MK that the current regulation of the beekeeping industry is not enough to combat counterfeiting.

– Manufacturers add syrup, pollen to honey – the modern chemical industry allows. It turns out very similar to natural honey. This situation is typical not only for Russia. This is a global practice: 60-70% of the product passed off as honey is fake, the expert noted.

True, for legislators, beekeepers still found a fly in the ointment. Representatives of the honey industry are dissatisfied with the idea of ​​parliamentarians to include the definition of “honey product” in the law “On beekeeping”. These are now fashionable honey soufflés, creams, as well as honey with the addition of nuts or berries. The bill defines a honey product as “made from honey, made using ingredients that are not inherent in the natural composition of honey.”

The Chairman of the Union of Russian Beekeepers believes that this amendment will nullify all efforts to combat counterfeiting, and the word “honey” has the right to be used only in relation to a natural product from an apiary without unnecessary additives.

– If the concept of “honey product” appears in the law, it will put an end to Russian beekeeping, – said Valery Kapunin.