There are certain statistics that make our heads spin. Have you ever been going about your business when you found out about a statistic that you had never stopped to consider? It can make your head spin and that’s how we felt when we learned that the honey we find in grocery stores is mostly fake. At least 75 percent of the honey that is sold at the grocery stores is not made in a hive.
So how many of these products already have the honey filtered out of them? How do we narrow down our choices at the grocery store, so that we know we are getting real honey? Food Safety News is here to let us know more as well. They offer a very simple explanation: when the honey does not contain pollen, it is likely to be derived from unsafe sources.
When you shop at Wal-Mart, Costco, Target, or Sam’s Club, you are not getting the real McCoy. However, the stores that are modeled after the farmer’s market format are a better choice. For example, Trader Joe’s offers a full amount of pollen. Those who shop at PCC stores are also safe. There is one key takeaway to be had from all of this: We need to be choosing different stores when we want real honey.
The big chain stores are simply unable to handle our needs in this regard. While you might not think that the distinction is a very big deal, it means a lot to those who are watchful of their nutrition. Once the pollen has been filtered out of the honey, it loses any nutritional value that it might have had previously. The filtration process also deprives us in other ways.
We are not able to track down the source of the honey, either. There are follow up questions that need to be asked, too. What else is being added to the honey or taken out to make it taste the way that shoppers expect it to? Now that we know we are being misled every time we shop at the big name supermarkets for honey, we are going to be asking far more questions in the future.
In the meantime, please be sure to share this story with your friends and loved ones. Most are blissfully unaware that their honey has been tampered with and we must all do our part to spread awareness.