UK honey has been exposed as being mixed with cheaper sugar syrups by the European Commission, which claimed shoppers were being defrauded by mislabelled products.
Some 320 products were sampled, of which 147, 46%, were found to contain “at least one marker of extraneous sugar sources,” the EU’s anti-fraud office (Olaf) said.
All 10 of the products from the UK failed the tests meanwhile, though Olaf did not specify which brands were involved.
“Such practices defraud consumers and put honest producers in jeopardy as they face unfair competition from operators who can slash prices thanks to illicit, cheap ingredients,” Olaf added.
Despite supermarkets and industry body the British Retail Consortium claiming honey is regularly tested to check its authenticity,, most is imported to be packaged in the UK and then sent on abroad.
Last year the UK imported 38,000 tonnes of honey from China, though shops do not have to label products as being blended in more than one country, leaving shoppers none the wiser.
The UK government downplayed the claims though, saying there was “insufficient evidence” to suggest the practices could be dubbed as fraud, adding it would examine the study.
“There is no place for adulterated honey which undermines consumer confidence and disadvantages responsible businesses,” A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs added.