APIS Volume 12, Number 8, August 1994

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In this issue

• Honey Processing Permitting in Florida
• Honey Adulteration on the Rise

PERMITTING HONEY PROCESSING

Dr. Keith Delaplane at the University of Georgia recently discussed food regulations in his column "Strictly for the Hobbyist," American Bee Journal, July 1994. His concern comes from hard experience. It seems that a food inspector visited a store that was buying Dr. Delaplane's honey. The merchant ceased doing business because Dr. Delaplane was not licensed by the state. At first disgruntled by yet another "imposition of government on agriculture and grass-roots living," Dr. Delaplane has changed his opinion. He now urges beekeepers to be proactive on this issue. Even the smallest beekeepers who sell honey to the public must comply with facility licensing laws in Georgia. According to Dr. Delaplane, "The licensing consists of a permit issued at no cost following a satisfactory inspection. Facilities are inspected quarterly thereafter."

The above policy used to be about the same in Florida. However, as of January 1993, the rules have changed. According to Florida Statute 500.12, Section 1(a), "A food permit from the department is required of any person in the business of manufacturing, processing, packing, holding, preparing or selling food at retail . . . " Most of this statement was already in the old law, but Section 1(b) says "Applications for a food permit from the department shall be accompanied by a fee to be determined by department rule, not to exceed $350. Food permits shall be renewed annually on or before January 1." Thus, the time is over when food processors can obtain free permits. For small producers (less than $10,000 in sales), this translates to a fee of $60.00 per year, according to Dr. John Rychener of the Bureau of Food and Meat Inspection, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Although the strict letter of the law requires all beekeepers selling honey to the public to obtain permits, there is some latitude. Florida employs only eighty-four food inspectors to oversee the food safety in over 25,000 processing plants and retail stores. The occasional small honey producer can be missed, according to Dr. Rychener. However, if and when the food inspection service becomes aware of any person/business without a permit, it must act. There is no penalty the first time one is discovered. Nevertheless, once contacted by a food inspector, one must obtain a license which is renewable annually with imposition of a late fee, if applicable.

Section 5E-6.008 of the same law provides sanitary regulations governing manufacture, processing, packing, or other handling of honey. They are summarized in Hints for the Hive 106, soon to be distributed as ENY 106 in the IFAS CD-ROM FAIRS program:

1. HONEY HOUSE. A honey house is any stationary or portable building, including equipment, used for the purpose of extracting, processing, packing or other handling of honey.
2. FLOORS. Floors...shall be impervious and easily cleaned...smooth, in good repair, and kept clean...and if having a drain, be drained into a septic tank, or cesspool, or be connected to local sewage disposal facilities.
3. WALLS AND CEILINGS. Shall have smooth washable surfaces, be clean and in good repair.
4. LIGHTING AND VENTILATION. Shall be adequately ventilated...permit efficient operations and cleaning of equipment.
5. DOORS AND WINDOWS. Shall be screened, kept in good repair, and equipped with bee escapes.
6. WATER SUPPLY. Shall be properly located, constructed and operated in accordance with local sanitary codes...easily accessible and sanitary.
7. CONSTRUCTION, CARE, USE AND REPAIR OF HONEY HOUSE, CONTAINERS AND EQUIPMENT. During operation, the honey house shall be used exclusively for extraction, processing, packing or other handling of honey and for the storage of equipment related to the business of the honey house. Containers shall be free of internal rust, cleaned before reuse...all open equipment should be covered when not in use.
8. WATER DISPOSAL. There shall be an efficient waste disposal system. Toilet facilities, including wash basins, shall be conveniently available to honey house personnel. Toilet rooms shall not open directly into any room of the honey house. Toilets without plumbing shall be at least 75 feet from the plant...screened and have a self-closing door.
9. STORAGE OF EQUIPMENT. Equipment shall be stored free from rust and contamination.
10. HEATING EQUIPMENT. No boiler, oil stove or other heating equipment that gives off dust or odor may be used within the honey house, unless it has proper ventilation...and shall comply with fire regulations.
11. WORKER SANITATION. Workers shall wear clean and washable clothing... keep hands clean, and be provided with clean and sanitary towels.
12. CARE AND HANDLING OF COMBS OF HONEY. Combs should be loaded and handled so as to protect them from contamination.
13. USE OF HONEY PUMPS. Before being pumped, honey shall be strained through a screen of at least eight meshes to the inch or pumped from a baffled sump tank which provides a constant supply of honey for the pump.
14. CONTAINERS AND STORAGE. Honey shall not be packed in containers which have previously contained pesticide, creosote, gasoline, kerosine, fuel oil, paint, glue or other toxic substances. Storage tanks are to be protected from contamination and packed honey stored in a clean and sanitary manner.
15. PESTICIDE PROHIBITED. The application of spray type pesticides in the honey house is prohibited during extracting, processing and packing honey.

Questions pertaining to Florida honey house sanitation should be directed to Dr. John Rychener or Mr. Kevin Lufkin, Bureau of Food and Meat Inspection, Food Safety Division, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, 3125 Conner Blvd., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1650, Ph. 904/488-3951 or 1-800/HELPFLA, "select or say 6" for Food Safety.

HONEY ADULTERATION ON THE RISE

There is evidence that honey adulteration is approaching epidemic proportions in Florida and elsewhere. As in the past, the prime culprit is high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). The addition of HFCS to honey, even in large amounts, is difficult to detect without laboratory testing. And occasionally, vendors simply sell corn syrup as honey. Any of the above practices renders honey either adulterated and/or misbranded under the Florida Food Law.

Many people are concerned about adulteration of honey, but it is extremely difficult to police. In a way, honey is its own enemy in this effort. The sweet is so healthful that, even when adulterated, it is not a health hazard. State and federal inspectors are stretched to their limits examining high risk foods. According to Mr. Lufkin of the Food Safety Division, mentioned in the previous article, there are not enough personnel resources left to enforce deceptive labelling practices. Inspectors are focusing instead on meat, milk and other products that are less forgiving than honey in their processing.

"Detection of honey adulteration is the easy part," Mr. Lufkin says, "Tracking the violators is the constant challenge. All too frequently, the trail leads to phantom producers and distributors, hiding behind false labels and cash transactions." Only when enough people contact food inspectors, legislators and other policy makers with solid information can some effective action be taken. In the recent past, adulteration was reduced after an especially blatant case came to trial followed by conviction. However, the practice is raising its ugly head again.

Honey adulteration adversely affects the apicultural industry by displacing its product in the marketplace. It also lowers the price as imports have been accused of doing. However, at least most imports are real honey and paying assessment for promotion to the National Honey Board. Adulterers reap double benefits: high prices for their product, cheaper to market than even the least expensive imported honey, coupled with no promotional assessment.

As in the past, the beekeeping industry is the first line of defense against adulteration. A "self-policing" program, sponsored by the American Beekeeping Federation continues to be in effect. Suspicious honey is tested and, if found adulterated, the Federation notifies the proper officials and sends a report to the person who sent the sample for their follow-up. In spite of the recent adulterating activity, the Federation is receiving very few samples.

Feeding bees sugar syrup and/or HFCS and extracting "honey" containing these products is also adulteration. Thus, beekeepers cannot be too careful. Even small amounts of adulterants are detected by tests currently in use. It is impossible to tell adulterated honey by either taste, smell or color. The only real evidence comes from defined techniques certified by the National Association of Chemists. Experience has shown, however, that adulterated product has one or all of the following characteristics:

1. No flavor, just sweet.
2. Very light or very dark
3. Molasses flavor
4. Consistently low price

In addition to the above characteristics, adulterated honey has often been associated with "rustic" labels and "Mason" type jars. If you see suspicious product, send a sample to the Secretary-Treasurer, American Beekeeping Federation, P.O. Box 1038, Jesup, GA 31545, ph 912/427-8447, along with the following information:

Date ____________________

DESCRIPTION OF HONEY SAMPLE: (include the label or copy the information on printed label including size of package, brand, name and address of packer or distributor)_____________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________

Where purchased:___________________________________________

Date purchased:____________________________________________

Code # on Jar or label_______________________

If only the packer's name appears on label, name and address of distributor:
____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________

Reason why honey is suspected of being adulterated_____________ ______________________________________________________________

Name and Address of Sender_________________________________

A fact sheet entitled ENY 103 Honey Adulteration is available on CD-ROM and from this office. It discusses the adulteration issue and provides the information given above on the American Beekeeping Federation's "self-policing" program.

Malcolm T. Sanford
Bldg 970, Box 110620
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL 32611-0620
Phone (904) 392-1801, Ext. 143 FAX: 904-392-0190
INTERNET Address: MTS@GNV.IFAS.UFL.EDU