Honey Adulteration and Its Consequences on Quality, Health, and the Economy, Along With the Analytical Techniques Used for Its Detection

Honey is one of the most widely consumed natural food materials in the world due to its nutritional, medicinal, and economic importance.However, adulteration of honey with cheap sweeteners such as invert sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and sugar syrups, has become a major global concern.Adulteration not only affects honey quality and authenticity but also poses serious health and economic risks to consumers and producers.Adulteration can elevate consumers' blood glucose levels, potentially contributing to diabetes, obesity, abdominal weight gain, hypertension, and higher blood lipid levels.The various analytical techniques, including liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, and isotope ratio mass spectrometry, have been employed for the detection of adulterants.Strengthening of food regulatory systems and awareness among consumers and beekeepers are vital to ensure the purity of honey and protect the global honey market.A review is essential to consolidate information on the extent of adulteration and techniques employed for its detection across regions and markets.This paper reviews honey adulteration practices, detection methods, and tools used for their detection, and outlines their impacts on human health, trade, and consumer trust and summarizes analytical methods for detection, improves monitoring protocols and discusses emerging technologies such as UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy and Artificial Intelligence (AI), Thermal Imaging and AI, Hyperspectral Imaging and Chemometrics.