Balparmak R&D Center Sets Direction for Global Beekeeping Industry

For half a century, Balparmak has worked to protect natural honey, a miraculous gift from bees and nature, and to deliver it to tables in its natural state. Through scientific research conducted at its R&D Centre, Balparmak is pioneering the bee products sector. The Balparmak R&D Centre, which has gained international recognition for the detection methods it developed to prevent counterfeiting and adulteration, is a scientific centre that has signed numerous principles to elevate all bee products with functional benefits to their rightful value and present them for the benefit of humanity.

Honey is one of nature's most miraculous products. As long as it is not exposed to external interference, this food substance can retain its naturalness for thousands of years without deterioration, produced by the equally miraculous creatures, bees, using the same methods for tens of thousands of years. Honey jars found in the Egyptian pyramids, dating to pre-Christian times and discovered in the tomb of the famous Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun, provide us with some of the oldest evidence of this natural cycle. The enzymes and compounds naturally present in honey have protected it for centuries. This extraordinary situation demonstrated that honey could exist as a nutrient independent of the effects of time. Therefore, important responsibilities fall on beekeepers, industry and consumers alike, so that bees may thrive and honey remains in its most natural state.

Working for 45 years to protect natural honey, beekeeping and bees
For half a century, Balparmak has worked to protect natural honey, a miraculous gift from bees and nature, and to deliver it from the hive to tables in its natural state. Through scientific research conducted at its R&D Centre, the company is also pioneering the sector. The Balparmak R&D Centre, which has gained international recognition for the methods it developed to prevent deception and counterfeiting in honey, is a scientific centre that has signed numerous principles for the benefit of humanity through the application of other bee products.

Ulaş Altıparmak, General Manager of Balparmak, says: "As a brand that has served the sector for 45 years, we act with the responsibility of protecting this natural partnership that continues through the miracle of nature, the labour of bees and the dedication of beekeepers."

One of the 10 companies in Turkey that invests the most in R&D among food companies, Balparmak founded a laboratory in 1986 in a 9 m² room with one person and has successfully transformed it into a comprehensive centre with a closed area of 1,607 m² featuring a USD 10 million technological infrastructure where mostly doctoral-degree scientists make international-level discoveries.

Today, the Balparmak R&D Centre is positioned as one of the four equivalent best R&D centres ranking first in Europe. Particularly thanks to analysis methods with international validity that it developed to prevent fraud in honey, the centre has gained worldwide trust. At the 6th International Bee Products Congress and International Honey Specialisation Commission Meeting held in Romania last year, the Balparmak R&D Centre, which presented the methods it developed for detecting counterfeiting and adulteration in honey and other bee products, was also elected as the leader of the commission's relevant working group.

Ulaş Altıparmak, emphasising that it is impossible to tell whether honey is natural or adulterated by looking at its colour, smell or appearance, states: "The only way to detect fraud in honey is through detailed analysis. Our focus is on protecting humans and nature. All the work we present for the sector's development is a reflection of this focus.

Through technological investments we have made in our R&D Centre and the work we have developed with our strong human resources consisting of expert engineers and doctoral scientists in the field, we are making scientific breakthroughs on a global scale. We can detect any sugar syrup, dyes and additives added to honey within 25 minutes to multiply or counterfeit it. Through our Apitera brand, we offer natural bee products with different functional properties to consumer taste, bringing comfort to their daily lives. These important studies in our R&D centre are important steps towards our goal of being a centre of knowledge. We can say that the whole scientific world knows the Balparmak R&D Centre for the countless successes it has achieved that have resonated around the world. This is a matter of pride for our country," he said.

Global reference point for natural honey and Turkish Pine Honey
Another important method developed by the Balparmak R&D Centre is the analysis method also called C4 sugar ratio. This method is applied by international laboratories to all honey, but when applied to pine honey specific to our country, it gave false positive values, resulting in a finding that our pine honey was not natural. Ulaş Altıparmak, noting that the Balparmak R&D Centre, conducting international cooperation and developing a C4 method specific to Turkish Pine Honey within the scope of a project involving four years of field work, opened the doors to exports, states: "95 per cent of the world's pine honey harvest is obtained from Turkey. This is a great opportunity for our country; Turkish Pine Honey is an important endemic honeydew honey variety unique to Turkey that could pave the way for Turkey's exports. Starting from the reality that pine honey cannot be examined using the analysis method used for flower honey, the newly developed C4 analysis method was published in international peer-reviewed journals and has been accepted by laboratories worldwide. This method became an important key to Europe's acceptance of Turkish Pine Honey. This situation has the potential to increase Turkey's pine honey exports by approximately 30 per cent. The new C4 analysis method was formalised by being included in TSE standards and opened the doors to a new era in our country's pine honey exports," he said.

International award for scientific work on propolis!
In recent years, the Balparmak R&D Centre has made a name for itself through research on propolis, one of the value-added products produced by bees. As a result of the research conducted, by extracting the DNA of propolis, known as a miracle of nature and produced by bees, the centre identified exactly 126 molecules in brown propolis also produced in Turkey.

Emphasising that propolis is one of the most valuable gifts nature has to offer humans, Dr. Emel Damarlı, R&D and Quality Director at Balparmak, states: "We are mobilising all our knowledge and technology to support propolis production, ensure its sustainability, develop new products and determine its importance in quality of life. In our latest research at the Balparmak R&D Centre, we identified 126 molecules with different properties in brown propolis. This year, at the International Propolis Conference held in Ribeirão Preto, a city in São Paulo state, Brazil, featuring a total of 54 scientific presentations from 24 countries, we were deemed worthy of the "Most Successful Scientific Work in the Propolis Field" award by the University of São Paulo, Brazil. This research on such a broad scale was conducted for the first time in the world. This work of ours is an important development for many sectors, from health to medicine and food. Our team is now preparing for clinical studies. What type of effects the identified molecules show will emerge from the results of these studies," she said.

Noting that the scientific achievements obtained are a matter of pride for Turkey, Balparmak General Manager Ulaş Altıparmak says that at the R&D Centre, 20 scientists, mostly with doctoral degrees, are working at full capacity to produce new discoveries. Referring to the fact that Balparmak is not just a brand but also an innovation and science-focused research centre, Altıparmak states: "Through science-based approaches, we will help Turkey come to a stronger position in the global market in propolis production. Furthermore, by encouraging our producers engaged in the beekeeping profession to conduct production in accordance with international standards, we will support sustainable growth in the sector," he said.

"We are directing the future through innovation"
Emphasising that another distinguishing feature of the Balparmak R&D Centre is making other bee products available for human use, Altıparmak continued: "At our R&D Centre, taking into account the changing needs of our consumers, we are also making a mark with innovative products. The Apitera series, developed in line with demand for natural and functional products, stands out with enriched formulations of bee products such as natural honey, propolis, bee pollen and royal jelly."

"Nature's gift: The unique story of natural honey from bees to tables is safeguarded with Balparmak"
Bees, the unique architects of nature, as they travel from flower to flower, keep natural life alive through their important contribution to plant pollination. The miracle of these small creatures that bring life to nature by carrying pollen is hidden in those drops of golden value that they produce with patience and labour. Honey... This unique natural flavour is a priceless gift that bees have given to humanity. Beekeepers are the most valuable part of this valuable process. Beekeepers, through this unique partnership they have established with bees, continue to keep the beekeeping profession alive as a legacy passed down through generations. Balparmak respectfully inherits the legacy of this unique and natural partnership, combining the miracles of nature with the labour of bees and the dedication of beekeepers, bringing them to tables while preserving their naturalness. It carefully monitors this unique journey of honey that begins in nature and extends to tables, with each jar of honey meeting consumers after being analysed from its natural process through advanced scientific methods.

Ulaş Altıparmak, stating "We are working with all our strength so that the story of natural honey continues for generations," emphasises that every detail of the Balparmak R&D Centre is a reflection of its vision of quality, trust and naturalness.