Before going on to explain the honeys that are entitled to receive Geographical Indication Registration, "What is genuine honey? How can it be distinguished?" I want to answer your questions. But first of all, it is not possible to briefly talk about the Bees. While constructing their hexagonal sanctuary, the bees work until they reach a perfect view intertwined with the precision of an engineer; they also produce a wonderful food with a unique taste and high nutritional value. It is formed when the nectar that bees swallow by taking from flowers, plants and fruit buds undergoes a chemical change thanks to the invertase enzyme in their organs called honey stomach. The honey that is filled into the combs and evaporated the excess water for a certain period of time and brought to its full consistency is glazed by the bees. Glazing is the process of covering the top of the hexagonal honeycombs with a very thin layer of wax. Thus, both the formation of honey is completed and it is packaged and ready for consumption in a way that is protected from external effects. As a result, we can call a honey that is not touched by human hands while being produced, "Genuine Honey".

 

This food with high nutritional value, which is obtained completely naturally, comes out only with the teamwork of flowers and bees. In other words, in addition to being a product completely far from fabrication, it is one of the most valuable gifts that nature offers with its endless production power. The reality of honey that has been touched by human hands and changed against the natural cycle of honey-making processes becomes controversial.

 

What is Genuine Honey? How to Tell if Honey is High Quality?

 

One of the examples of food fraud that we have come across from time to time in recent years is the "Fake Honey" incident. Because of these events, you may have difficulty in trusting even packaged products. So let's have a look at the properties of Genuine Honey,

 

If we examine this subject under a few headings;

 

1. Candied: Genuine Honey will be candied in an average of 2 months under normal storage conditions. Fake Honey, on the other hand, does not sweeten; This is because of food preservatives and artificial sweeteners.

 

2. Fragrance: The smell of a real honey is lighter than a fake honey. Although it is quite difficult to distinguish this difference; Glucose and artificial sugar in fake honey can give honey a different smell.

 

3. Fluidity: Contrary to popular belief, the fluidity of Genuine honey is high. Turn the honey jar upside down, if the honey is flowing intermittently, it is likely to be fake honey.

 

4. Combustion: One of the frequently used honey tests is to burn honey. Fake honey will burn easily due to the glucose syrup in it. You can test the authenticity of honey by taking some of your honey into a wooden spoon and holding it on fire. Real honey does not burn.

 

Turkey has a wide variety of endemic plant and animal species; It is also very lucky in honey diversity. Turkey has various geographical and natural conditions where different climates are experienced at the same time; For these reasons, it is a country where different high quality honeys are produced in each region. Thanks to the "Beekeeping", which has been made as a traditional profession for centuries, the honey that has been kept without losing its quality until today is registered by the TURKISH PATENT AND BRAND INSTITUTION and passes into the World Food literature as a world heritage.

 

The natural production processes of genuine, high-quality honey identified with its region are first examined, and a Geographical Indication Registry Document (Product Description, Distinguishing Features, Production Method and Inspection Processes) is created for the production processes, and then its compliance with these standards is checked. If there is a production method that does not comply with these standards, for example, "Anzer Honey" cannot be written on that honey. Only producers who have successfully passed the controls and inspections in accordance with these standards can use the name "Anzer Honey". You can understand that the product is original and of high quality from the label on it.

 

As we enter the year 2022, there are 16 kinds of honey that has received the Geographical Indication registration in Turkey and has proven its originality and quality. These honeys;

 

Anzer Honey, Ardahan Flower Honey, Babadağ Thyme Honey, Bayburt Honey, Dikmen Flower Honey/Dikmen Thyme Honey, Düzce Chestnut Honey, Artvin Hatila Honey, Kars Honey, Kırklareli Oak Honey, Marmaris Pine Honey, Muğla Pine Honey, Pervari Honey, Refahiye Honey ,Sinop Chestnut Honey, Özvatan Flower Honey, Şile Chestnut Honey.

 

In the coming years, new ones may be added to this list, which consists of all precious honeys according to the taste of the palate. World-renowned Geographically Indicated Anzer Honey is just one of them. It is so precious; Due to the limited production of Anzer honey, its meeting with the consumer is done by auction method. With the Geographical Indication registration, we mentioned in the first part of our article; It eliminates the question of reality that arises in our minds, and allows us to more easily reach genuine honey that we can safely consume. As Endemigo, we are the trust of nature; We took the responsibility to bring the real honey with Geographical Indication to the whole world. If you want to examine the real honeys, you can reach the original natural honeys by clicking here.