Did you know that much of the honey you find on the supermarket shelves is considered fake honey? 

According to a CBC Study in 2019, more than one fifth of honey imported from other countries failed a Canadian Food Inspection Agency test for pure honey. Even though they import the honey as 'pure' and 'unadulterated', fake honey slips under the radar into Canada all the time. 

Demand for honey is increasing worldwide, and therefore ‘fast production’ of honey is occurring. Beekeepers are being asked to compete against a form of liquid, ‘fake honey’ that wasn’t even created from a bee…how crazy is that! 

(Note: fake honey is different from pasteurized honey... although Chandler Honey doesn't approve of either. Fake honey is a substance cut with sugar or corn syrup. Pasteurized honey is real from the hive and then superheated to remove all of the nutritional benefits. This article is talking specifically about fake honey)

There is no legislation in Canada that will hold you accountable for selling fake honey. Fake honey is referred to as low-cost syrup. Many companies dilute real honey with corn, rice, beet, and other sweet syrups and claim it to be pure honey when it is actually diluted with foreign syrups. In comparison to actual honey, these so-called "pure honeys" are likewise quite cheap in grocery stores. It’s like they say: you either pay cheap and get cheap, or you buy well and get quality goods.  If you're seeking for genuine honey, it's better to purchase locally.

Here are just a few methods that you can check to see whether your honey is fake or real 

Place your honey in a glass of warm water. If the honey begins to dissolve in the water immediately without globbing, it is not real. Because real honey is denser than water, it will collect in a little pool under the surface.

Take a paper towel and dip a small section of it into your honey. Once you’ve gotten some honey on the power towel, use a lighter to light that specific part on fire. If your honey doesn’t caramelize or bubble while it burns, then it’s fake!

Pour some honey on your thumb and lean it down to see if it drips down. If your honey drips down easily, then it is most likely fake. Thick honey will remain intact and won’t drip down like water; thick honey is almost always ‘raw and unpasteurized’ making it real!

The "Canadian" Test

The CBC study found that no honey that was created in Canada was considered fake. Canadian honey has an extremely trustworthy reputation, and when you can see "product of Canada" or "Canada No 1", you can be confident that the honey is real (although you still need to make sure it isn't pasteurized!). 

At Chandler Honey we make sure to provide our customers the best of the best! We only work with raw and unpasteurized and make sure there are no additives. You can test any of our honey and see that it’s real!