3 ms·

I don't know if aunt jemima and similar brands of syrup count as "fake Maple syrup". It doesn't say maple syrup on the bottle anymore. They usually say "maple

I don't know if aunt jemima and similar brands of syrup count as "fake Maple syrup". It doesn't say maple syrup on the bottle anymore. They usually say "maple-flavored syrup" at worst, or just "syrup". It's not maple syrup, but it's not labeled as maple syrup and not advertised as maple syrup. Imitation vanilla is labeled imitation vanilla. Not a secret that it's not made from actual vanilla. I'm surprised honey hasn't come up here more. The majority of honey in the US contains very little actual honey, but the ingredients list just says "pure filtered honey". If you've ever had real honey, it's night and day. If you want a cheaper honey substitute, that's fine. If a company is labeling a cheaper honey substitute as "pure filtered honey", that's not fine.

tptacek 4y ago
I get honey from jars at the grocery store and, every once in awhile, from a local farm who supplies my local butcher shop (because I'm lazy, at the butcher, and realize I'm out of honey). The local farm honey is definitely real honey (the butcher shop people have been to the farm). Apart from the floral quality of the farm honey, I've never noticed a difference from the orange or blossom honey I get at the supermarket. I don't think most supermarket honey is fake. Maybe the bear honey is?
- msrenee 4y ago
  Until recently, the bear honey was basically all you could get at the grocery store. Now you can get some real stuff as well.
- kasey_junk 4y ago
  If it says honey on the jar and there is no ingredients list or the ingredients list says it’s honey, then it is honey (unless the producer is just absolutely breaking the label laws). That said, you should be able to _easily_ distinguish different varieties of honey or even different sources of honey by tasting it. If you can’t then it’s likely a big commodity blend. Go do a blind from a producer that lists the hive locations for the honey. It’s probably the product that has the most obvious “terroir” effect that I know of. I can tell the difference between honey from hives that are less than 2 miles apart (Woodlawn vs Englewood in Chicago).
  - msrenee 4y ago
    https://www.insider.com/fake-honey-problems-how-it-works-2020-9?amp https://www.insider.com/fake-honey-problems-how-it-works-202... A lot of honey is imported from places where it has been mixed with other sugars or adulterated in other ways. The bottlers either don't know or don't care because the price is lower and the profit margin is higher. The labeling laws are being broken by a number of big producers. The adulterated honey is generally safe, but is not pure honey.

tptacek 4y ago

I get honey from jars at the grocery store and, every once in awhile, from a local farm who supplies my local butcher shop (because I'm lazy, at the butcher, and realize I'm out of honey). The local farm honey is definitely real honey (the butcher shop people have been to the farm). Apart from the floral quality of the farm honey, I've never noticed a difference from the orange or blossom honey I get at the supermarket. I don't think most supermarket honey is fake. Maybe the bear honey is?

msrenee 4y ago
Until recently, the bear honey was basically all you could get at the grocery store. Now you can get some real stuff as well.
kasey_junk 4y ago
If it says honey on the jar and there is no ingredients list or the ingredients list says it’s honey, then it is honey (unless the producer is just absolutely breaking the label laws). That said, you should be able to _easily_ distinguish different varieties of honey or even different sources of honey by tasting it. If you can’t then it’s likely a big commodity blend. Go do a blind from a producer that lists the hive locations for the honey. It’s probably the product that has the most obvious “terroir” effect that I know of. I can tell the difference between honey from hives that are less than 2 miles apart (Woodlawn vs Englewood in Chicago).
- msrenee 4y ago
  https://www.insider.com/fake-honey-problems-how-it-works-2020-9?amp https://www.insider.com/fake-honey-problems-how-it-works-202... A lot of honey is imported from places where it has been mixed with other sugars or adulterated in other ways. The bottlers either don't know or don't care because the price is lower and the profit margin is higher. The labeling laws are being broken by a number of big producers. The adulterated honey is generally safe, but is not pure honey.