Intertek certifies Kejriwal Bee Care India as the world's first provider of True Source Honey
24 Sep 2011
Buenos Aires, Argentina – Intertek, a leading global provider of testing, inspection and certification services, today announced that Kejriwal Bee Care India (P) Ltd., an exporter of honey from India to the USA and Middle East, is the world's first entity to be certified under the True Source Honey program. True Source Honey is a global initiative to certify whole chain traceability and sustainability of ethically sourced, fairly traded honey.
Today at Apimondia 2011 in Buenos Aires, a bi-annual global event dedicated to apiculture, representatives from Intertek and True Source Honey presented the official certificate to Kejriwal.
True Source Certification is an instrument for those companies in the honey supply chain who wish to demonstrate through an independent third party audit that their sourcing practices are in compliance with US and International Trade laws, particularly regarding traceability. The exporter in the supplying country has a key role to ensuring traceability in the supply chain; Kejriwal demonstrates that their sourcing practices of traceability fully comply with True Source Certified standards. Intertek's audit of Kejriwal included an inspection of documents, random sampling and testing of honey for the origin of the samples and visits to beekeepers to verify volumes of supply and production. Since authenticity and traceability of food is increasingly gaining importance in the global market, True Source Certification will contribute to Kejriwal's image as a trustworthy partner for its international trade partners.
"Intertek is pleased to present the first confirmation of the True Source Certified Program to the Indian exporter Kejriwal. The purpose of our audit, testing and certification was to determine that only honey of Indian origin is exported as a 'Product of India' to the United States. We are confident that other leading companies will follow Kejriwal's example by participating in the True Source Certified Program," said Dr. Kurt-Peter Raezke, Director of Testing & Analytics for Intertek Food Services.
"True Source Honey congratulates Kejriwal Bee Products of India as the first company in the world to have successfully completed a True Source Certified audit. This represents a significant step towards establishing a system of traceability best practices for honey that can provide full assurance of honey origin," added Eric Wenger, Chairman of True Source Honey.
"We are pleased to become the first True Source Honey certified entity in the world. As honey circumvention is a very important topic across the world, this initiative was launched to ensure that the origin of the honey that is supplied is certified as pure Indian product, thus giving more confidence to our valued customers. We are proud to receive this certificate from True Source Honey, LLC and Intertek", said Prakash Kejriwal, Director of Kejriwal Bee Care India. By attending events such as Apimondia, and partnering with companies like Kejriwal, Intertek and True Source Honey are working together to increase awareness of this industry-wide solution to ensure ethical honey sourcing practices. Through the partnership and work of these two entities, consumers can remain confident in the reputation and integrity of honey, one of the few remaining natural food products.
Contact:
Yvonne Gamradt
Intertek Food Services
Direct: +49 421 65727-200
Email: yvonne.gamradt@intertek.com
About Intertek
Intertek is a leading provider of quality and safety solutions serving a wide range of industries around the world. From auditing and inspection, to testing, quality assurance and certification, Intertek people are dedicated to adding value to customers' products and processes, supporting their success in the global marketplace. Intertek has the expertise, resources and global reach to support its customers through its network of more than 1,000 laboratories and offices and 30,000 people in more than 100 countries around the world. For further information please visit www.intertek.com.
About True Source Honey
The True Source Honey, LLC is an effort by a number of honey companies and importers to call attention to the problem of illegally sourced honey; to encourage action to protect consumers and customers from these practices; and to highlight and support legal, transparent and ethical sourcing. The initiative seeks to help maintain the reputation of honey as a high-quality, highly valued food and further sustain the U.S. honey sector. For more information, visit www.TrueSourceHoney.com