More clarity for honey with “origin earth

Potatoes from the region, specialties from italy: in the supermarket, many people like to pay attention to where food actually comes from.

But sometimes there’s just a “mixture of EU and non-EU countries” – namely on many honey jars on the shelves. That says no more than “origin: planet earth,” complains the consumer organization foodwatch. “Such a label may be of interest to the alien population.”Beekeepers also call for clearer information on origin. German food minister julia klockner (CDU) supports a push for stricter EU rules.

“The current labeling of honey is hard to beat for absurdity,” said a foodwatch spokesman. “Who actually thinks up such rules?”Food producers had to be obliged to indicate at least the countries of origin of the main ingredients in their products. The german beekeepers association is also putting on the pressure: “this included that next to each country of origin the respective percentage of the product had to be mentioned,” said a spokeswoman. From general designations on the label, consumers can only see that it is a foreign product.

In principle, the country of origin must be indicated, as an EU directive stipulates. But if the contents of the honey jar come from several countries, it can also be a blanket statement for the entire mixture: from the 27 EU countries, from “non-EU countries” around the globe, or a “mixture of honey from EU countries and non-EU countries”. You can find this on many labels – mostly in small print, from “golden-creamy country honey” to “soft-flavored beekeeper”s honey”. At least a little more concrete are statements like honey “from europe and south america” or imprints like “bulgaria, austria”.

The background is also that domestic production does not meet demand. Three times as much is imported to germany. According to the federal statistical office, the largest volumes in 2019 came from mexico, ukraine and argentina – and from eu partners from bulgaria, romania and hungary. According to the industry, the mixing of different honeys from all over the world ensures a "consistently high quality", even with the familiar taste. The region makes no difference. "Because the origin of honey is always the bee," argues the honey association of importers and bottlers. Precise indication of country of origin would be "irritating" for customers. That was pointed out qualitatsunterschiede, which are not present.

However, there is a movement in the eu to tighten up. A push by 16 member states at the beginning of the year aims to make it compulsory for honey blends to state the countries of origin of the honey. This is also a concern for germany, according to the federal food ministry. Naming individual countries takes into account the greater need for information on the part of consumers. The discussions are to be advanced in the german EU council presidency.

In supermarkets, honey with a provenance from germany is usually not among the cheapest available. The importers" association is concerned about imports from china at "extremely low prices". In the case of the "real german honey" brand, an address on the jar also shows which region it comes from – in full, as the association explained. On the label, information on the origin and type of honey can also be combined – for example, fir honey from the black forest or bavarian forest honey. In the case of even more local data, the flight radius of the bee colonies is also important.

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