The sweetness of your favourite 'pure honey' may not be entirely the result of bees painstakingly converting flower nectar into the natural sweetener.

Instead, it could also be the work of crafty manufacturers concocting substances that give it the sweetness of natural honey.

A nationwide investigation into the honey industry by the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) found that four out of every five sampled brands contained additives despite being labelled and marketed as "100 percent pure and natural honey", opening a probe into yet another case of false and misleading advertising and consumer deception.

The findings, contained in the CAK's annual report for the financial year ended June 2025, followed laboratory tests on honey brands collected from manufacturers and importers across the country. CAK said the tests were done by an accredited laboratory.

More than 80 percent of the sampled products were found to be non-compliant because they contained additives above the permissible limits.

The CAK said that following the results, it launched a formal investigation into the implicated manufacturers and importers.

"Notably, the affected honey products were marketed and labelled as '100 percent Pure and Natural Honey,' which was found to be misleading and contrary to Clause 4.1 of KS EAS 36:2020," the authority said.

"The clause stipulates that pure honey must not contain any added substances," added the watchdog, whose mandate includes protecting consumers from unfair trade practices.

The authority said marketing adulterated honey as "100 percent pure and natural honey" amounts to misleading consumers by making false claims about the quality and composition of the product.

It also found that the affected brands failed to meet the prescribed consumer product standards for honey, making their sale an offence under the Competition Act.

"The labelling and sale of adulterated honey were deemed to violate Sections 55(a)(i) and 60(1) of the Act, which prohibit the supply of consumer goods that fail to meet prescribed product information standards," said the CAK.

The parties involved were required to implement corrective measures on product packaging, storage and handling to ensure compliance with the applicable laws and standards.

"The entities further committed to periodic compliance monitoring by the Authority to safeguard consumer welfare."

According to the Codex Alimentarius Commission, the international food standards body established by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), honey must not contain any added food ingredients or additives, including sugars and sweeteners.

"Honey sold as such shall not have added to it any food ingredient, nor shall any other additions be made other than honey. Honey shall not have any objectionable matter, flavour, aroma, or taint absorbed from foreign matter during its processing and storage," says Codex.

Honey has become increasingly popular as more health-conscious consumers switch from refined sugar to what is perceived as a healthier natural sweetener.

Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that honey production rose by 19.3 percent to 20,602.5 tonnes in the five years to 2025, reflecting growing demand for the product.

The 2019 Population and Housing Census showed that 201,406 households engaged in beekeeping as a source of livelihood, a figure that is likely to have increased as demand for honey has grown.

In 2020, juice maker Del Monte Kenya was fined Sh776,025 by the competition watchdog for misrepresenting the quality of one of its products.

The anti-competition watchdog later entered into a settlement agreement with the firm after finding that it had contravened Section 55(a)(i) of the Competition Act.

A person commits an offence under the law if they "falsely represent that goods are of a particular standard, quality, value, grade, composition, style or model or have had a particular history or particular previous use."

Del Monte said CAK investigations related to missing wording on the packaging of one of its products.

Azam juice maker Bakhresa Food Products was also fined Sh47,711 for a similar infringement involving the composition of its juice products.

The CAK's previous crackdown on misleading representations has also targeted the financial services sector, with firms such as Faulu Microfinance Bank and Harambee Sacco being sanctioned for similar violations.

→ dakure@ke.nationmedia.com

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