28 January: ECVC beekeepers mobilise against massive imports of fake honey

Under the slogan "European beekeepers against fraud. Manufactured syrups are not honey", the beekeeping sector of COAG, member organisation of ECVC, has called for a protest action on 28 January, starting at 11:00, in front of the EU headquarters in Madrid to fight against massive fraud in the honey sector.

The avalanche of syrups and honey substitutes on the shelves of large European distribution chains and the permissiveness of the administrations is undermining the efforts of professional beekeepers to offer a high quality, healthy and sustainable product. "The EU and national governments have to act immediately; reinforcing border controls, validating analysis methods and banning ultra-filtration", underlined Pedro Loscertales, responsible for the beekeeping sector of COAG, member organisation of ECVC.

In March last year, the European Commission published a joint report by OLAF (European Anti-Fraud Office), the JRC (Joint Research Centre of the European Union) and DG SANTE (Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety of the European Commission), which presented the results of a border control plan carried out on hundreds of honey imports during 2021 and 2022. The conclusions of the report, based on the analytical techniques used in the investigation, are devastating: 46% of the European samples analysed were fraudulent and 66% of the importing companies controlled had at least one positive result. In the case of Spain, the percentages rise to 51% of imports with fraudulent products and 85% of import companies with at least one positive result.

ECVC member organisations have for years been closely monitoring the honey market and imports by the Spanish and European industry, and warning that the price of certain products imported and marketed in member states is incompatible with their labelling as "honey" on the market. This Commission investigation confirms our suspicions and warnings: that the massive presence of syrups and honey substitutes have been distorting the market for years and artificially pushing honey prices downwards.

In this context, the tariff quota provided for in the text of the EU-Mercosur agreement will allow 45,000 tonnes of duty-free honey to be imported into Europe from Mercosur countries. This honey will be priced lower than European honey and will further aggravate dumping for European beekeepers. EU beekeepers are therefore also strongly opposed to this agreement, along with their colleagues in other agricultural sectors.

"This is an unacceptable reality for a sector that is increasingly committed to sustainable and quality production, as well as adapting to the devastating effects of climate change for bees and for our activity", said Pedro Loscertales, head of the beekeeping sector of COAG. Faced with the evidence, the EU and national authorities cannot turn a blind eye and allow this trade in fraudulent honey that has displaced our honey from the points of sale of European distribution chains. "Not only is the future of a professional sector at stake, but also the pollination of fields and crops and all the benefits associated with food and biodiversity," stressed Loscertales.