Honey

Honey

Honey

Preserving the authenticity of PGI honey in Spain

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Ever wondered if the honey on your spoon is as pure as it seems?
Let’s follow its path from hive to jar

Imagine enjoying a spoonful of honey, only to wonder if it truly comes from the flowers and regions claimed on the label.

Honey is cherished for its taste and health benefits, but the growing demand has also attracted fraud.

Unscrupulous practices like mixing honey with cheap corn or rice syrups, or mislabeling its botanical origin, threaten EU beekeepers, distort the market and leave consumers unsure of what they are buying.

Traditional testing methods are slow, expensive and require experts, highlighting the need for faster, more practical solutions.

Watson solution

Watson is developing a low-cost, user-friendly system to detect honey fraud quickly and accurately, using Near-Infrared (NIR) Spectroscopy and Hyperspectral Imaging (HSI).

These tools allow for fast, non-destructive, real-time analysis and make authenticity checks accessible to both public authorities and quality control organisations.


Real-life scenarios where Watson works its magic

Detecting added sugars and syrups

Using NIR and HSI sensors, control authorities can quickly flag honey adulterated with cheaper syrups. These fast, on-site checks are low-cost, non-destructive and allow more lots to be screened with fewer resources.

Verifying botanical origin

The same sensors can coarsely confirm whether honey matches its declared origin (“Coast,” “Mountain,” “Forest,” or "Generic Asturian Honey"). Samples that do not fit are flagged for further investigation.

Early Warning System (EWS) for the honey value chain

Aggregating data across production, processing and retail, the EWS alerts control authorities about potential hotspots or unusual trends in the market.

Consumer-facing traceability

A mobile app lets consumers quickly view key facts about the honey they buy, ensuring transparency and making traceability information accessible to everyone.

The story behind the data

Watson combines physico-chemical data, pollen analysis, sample metadata, NIR spectra, hyperspectral images, logistics and production history and monitoring data. Portable, AI-assisted NIR and HSI devices, the EWS and the consumer app work together to make honey authenticity verifiable from processing to consumption.


Who wins when Watson is in action
Food authorities

Get actionable, real-time alerts, screen more lots efficiently and improve oversight of the honey market.

Beekeepers and packers

Protect the reputation of PGI-labelled honey, reduce exposure to market dilution and demonstrate product authenticity.

Consumers

Gain confidence in the origin and quality of the honey they buy, with easy access to reliable traceability information.

The result?
A more trustworthy, safer (and sweeter) honey market

With Watson, honey producers, authorities and consumers all benefit. Fast, on-site checks, early alerts and transparent information create a reliable ecosystem where every jar tells the true story of its origin and quality.


LEAD PARTNER: ASINCAR
More information

For further details, check out our Pilot Booklet: