Indian honey makers including Dabur, Patanjali, Baidyanath, Hamdard Laboratories and Hitkary, in addition to advisory firm Consocia, have collaborated to form an India Honey Alliance (IHA), which they said was aimed at dealing with adulteration and to provide direction to implement best industry practices.
The development comes six months after the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) said samples of 10 leading Indian honey products were found to be adulterated with sugar syrup, which the manufacturers denied. The report led to food regulator FSSAI stating that it will consider revising standards and regulations for packaged honey sold in the country.
The IHA comprises of honey companies, exporters, bee-keepers, farmers, processors, and science experts from across the country, a statement issued by IHA said. “IHA has initiated dialogue with the Centre and is working closely with consumers and scientific bodies to take scalable technology to farmers and apiarists,” the statement said. IHA chairperson Shahrukh Khan said the alliance would address myths and misconceptions about honey and its purity, and concerns about adulteration. Category sales of honey have been growing in double digits, since it is known for its immunity boosting properties.
At the time of releasing the report on honey adulteration, CSE director general Sunita Narain had said 10 of 13 honey brands failed an NMR test, which is the only one that detects ‘Chinese sugar’ used to adulterate honey. NMR tests were made mandatory in August to screen honey meant for exports but is not part of FSSAI’s standards, the CSE report had stated.
Source: ETRetail
