How to spot fake honey: six checks and five common frauds
Seven factual checks to tell a raw honey from an industrial or counterfeit one, plus three tests you can run at home. Colour, texture, crystallisation, origin and price.
The authenticity of a honey is not settled by a word on a label. It is checked against six objective signs, visible on the jar, in the spoon, under the light. Six simple gestures anyone can make in thirty seconds, and they are enough to tell a genuine raw honey from an industrial one in disguise. Here is the method, and the five most common fakes it sends packing.
Contents
How to tell if a honey is really raw
The label: a precise origin and a batch number
A real raw honey gives a precise origin: country, region, sometimes the town or the apiary. Not simply “EU” or “blend of EU and non-EU honeys”, which are the markers of an industrial honey of doubtful provenance. The batch number and the harvest date are essential: they let you trace the product back to its source. On our jars, every batch carries its own identifier. Our approach to lab analyses and traceability sets out how we document it.
The words raw, unheated or unpasteurised
A raw honey is never heated above 35°C. Industrial pasteurisation, used to keep honey liquid and hold off crystallisation, destroys the finer aromas. Gentle filtering is compatible with a raw honey. Ultra-fine filtering, on the other hand, takes out the pollen and strips a single-flower honey of its aromatic signature.
The texture on the spoon
A simple test: dip a spoon, lift it out and tilt it. A raw honey is thick. It runs slowly, in one unbroken thread. An industrial honey is very runny, close to a liquid syrup: the sign of a high water content, or of dilution.
The natural colour
Every single-flower honey has its signature colour: deep amber for Yemeni Sidr honey (jujube), cream ivory for white honey of the heights, golden to brown for black seed honey, a pink cast for Rose Aromiel, acacia honey infused with rosehip. A colour that is uniformly golden, with no shading, is suspect. Be wary of a honey that is perfectly clear and bright: more often than not it has been heated or blended.
No blending between origins
A genuine single-flower honey does not blend several origins. The words “blend of EU and non-EU honeys” are the number one red flag of an industrial honey. They mean an assembly of honeys from different countries, sometimes adulterated with sugar syrups.
Natural crystallisation over time
A raw honey crystallises naturally, faster or slower depending on what is in it. That is a mark of quality, not a fault. A honey that stays liquid indefinitely has probably been heated, or contains glucose syrups. Our article on crystallisation explains the whole thing in detail.
The technical figures: HMF, moisture, heat
| Measure | Raw honey | Industrial honey | House standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moisture content | < 18 % | up to 20 % | < 18 % (lab analysis) |
| HMF | < 40 mg/kg | up to 80 mg/kg | < 40 mg/kg target |
| Max handling temp. | ≤ 35-40 °C | pasteurised at 70 °C+ | ≤ 35 °C |
| Origins | single flower, traced | EU/non-EU blend | single flower, 100 % traced |
A honey gives itself away by three things: how slowly it runs, how thick the silence is in the mouth, and how patiently it crystallises.
The Graines de Pèlerins doctrineThe five most common fakes
Honey cut with glucose syrup means corn, rice or beet syrup added to increase the volume. C-IRMS analyses pick up this kind of adulteration.
Heated, ultra-filtered honey has no pollen left, so the floral origin cannot be identified.
Artificial honey is 100 % syrups, coloured and flavoured chemically. Rarer, but it exists.
Multi-origin blended honey is legally sold as “honey” but has no clear identity and no distinct sensory profile.
The false single-flower honey is sold as “acacia”, “manuka” or “Sidr honey” with no pollen analysis.
Frequently asked questions
What is a raw honey?
A raw honey is never heated above 35-40 °C. Filtering is gentle, the pollen is kept, the finer aromas are left intact.
Why does a honey crystallise?
Crystallisation is a natural chemical process caused by glucose supersaturation. It is a mark of quality and of authenticity.
What do the words “blend of EU and non-EU honeys” tell you?
That this is a multi-origin industrial honey, often assembled with no traceability batch by batch.
What is the moisture content of a raw honey?
Below 18 %. Above 20 %, a honey can ferment.
Gift box · 3 traced origins
The Ritual Box 74,90 €
Discover the gift boxGoing further
- How to recognise a genuine black seed honey
- Why honey crystallises
- Sidr honey vs Manuka
- Why rare honey costs 30€ to 1 000€/kg
Sources & References
- EU Council Directive 2001/110/EC. Honey definitions and quality standards.
- Codex Alimentarius. Standard for Honey CXS 12-1981.
- Bogdanov S. et al. Honey for nutrition and health. J Am Coll Nutr, 2008.
Worth discovering
Our rare honeys, traced and documented
Documented origins, batches followed jar by jar, packed by hand in France. The best answer to counterfeiting is still transparency.
See our rare honeys →In the same spirit: Our lab analyses · Recognising a genuine black seed honey
Editorial information. The content of this article is strictly informative, cultural and sensory. It describes the geographical origin, the botanical composition, the aroma profile and the traditional uses of rare honeys. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a recommendation for treatment. Honey is a foodstuff. For any medical question, consult a qualified professional. Compliant with Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006.
Continue exploring
Discover our rare honeys
Four exceptional origins, limited harvests, gift boxes made for giving and for tasting.
See the collectionAlso worth discovering: our Almonds of Distinction