Importance of Detecting Brown Rice Syrup in Honey

Detection of Brown Rice Syrup in Honey: Its Importance Balparmak does not limit its business to supplying natural honey to consumers; through analyses conducted at its R&D Center and new methods developed for identifying adulteration and counterfeiting in honey, it demonstrates its standing in the sector. Balparmak, which has recently made significant contributions to work such as detecting brown rice syrup—an indicator of honey adulteration—and the development of the C4 Sugar Ratio Method specifically for pine honey to address barriers to exports, has called on consumers to access natural honey. Since its establishment, Balparmak has continued its contribution to the sector by delivering honey and other bee products in their natural state to consumers, conducting analyses at its R&D Center, developing new methods to prevent counterfeiting and adulteration, and carrying out scientific research. Balparmak Board Chairman Özen Altıparmak, emphasizing that they analyze honey carefully selected within the scope of food safety and hygiene across at least 100 parameters, stressed that the Balparmak R&D Center, with its expert staff and infrastructure capabilities, conducts scientific research on honey and other bee products and has developed new methods for identifying counterfeiting and adulteration. Noting that the Honey and Other Bee Products Quality Control Laboratory (APİLAB) is now Turkey's only and Europe's most comprehensive equivalent of four honey specialty laboratories, Altıparmak stated: "In recent times, counterfeiting and adulteration in honey have reached the highest levels. We want consumers to access natural honey. For this reason, we are ready to open our R&D Center to anyone who wants to access natural honey and to support the analysis of their products. Retailers and brands doubting the naturalness of the honey they sell can benefit from our center's experience." Drawing attention to consumers' confidence in Balparmak and its products, Altıparmak noted that this trust is not limited to Turkey alone and continued as follows: "Our brand enjoys great confidence abroad as well. Our repeated position as the sector's export leader is also a result of this… We export to countries such as Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Japan, Singapore, Cyprus, and Azerbaijan. We hold the position of Turkey's largest branded, packaged filtered honey exporter. In Europe, we are present on the shelves of both local and gourmet product retailers as well as chain stores. In the coming period, we aim to enter new markets such as the Middle East and North America, particularly with our value-added and functional products. We will also maintain our presence in national chain stores in European countries and continue to expand our reach in the region." "We succeeded in identifying the compound that indicates brown rice syrup in honey" Balparmak R&D and Quality Director Dr. Emel Damarlı provided the following information about the work of the Balparmak R&D Center, where a team of 20 people operates: "In our R&D Center, equipped with the latest technologies and advanced equipment, we conduct research on many subjects including detection of counterfeiting and adulteration, determination of botanical origin, identification of bioactive (health-beneficial) molecules in all bee products, and precise determination of residue levels across a broad spectrum. With the new methods we have developed, we are taking important steps to prevent counterfeiting and adulteration in honey. One of these is our new methodology—a world first—for detecting the presence of brown rice syrup in honey… With this method, we have succeeded in identifying the compound that indicates brown rice syrup in honey. This method we developed was published in "LWT Food Science&Technology," one of the world's most respected scientific journals, thereby entering world literature. We have also filed a patent application for this methodology, which is a world first. We conduct all this work together with colleagues who are experts in the field, and in addition to our publications in peer-reviewed scientific journals, we share our findings with stakeholders at the national and international level through conferences, presentations, and seminars." Balparmak opened the way for pine honey exports Through scientific studies conducted at the Balparmak R&D Center, the company also undertook very important work on the development of the C4 Sugar Ratio Method—which had posed a major obstacle to pine honey exports—specifically for pine honey. Providing information on the research they developed at the Balparmak R&D Center and conducted together with reference laboratories abroad, Damarlı stated: "In our research, we demonstrated that the C4 analysis method applied worldwide is not suitable for pine honey and that a different method should be applied. We shared this method with reference laboratories abroad and it was accepted. Thanks to this newly developed method, honey believed to be adulterated was actually found to be natural honey. In this way, the path for pine honey exports from our country was opened."