The illegal marketing of “aphrodisiac honey” has gained a disturbing scale, with record entries reaching 31,000 tonnes in France in 2024, report several French media. Tunisia, which has 12,000 beekeepers for an annual production of 1,750 tonnes, is among the countries of origin identified in this worrying international traffic.
The French authorities have identified several countries as main sources of these fraudulent products, including Malaysia, Turkey, Tunisia and Thailand. These “hone miracles”, sold in the form of “shots” or “sticks” with catchy names such as “Black Horse” or “Bio Max”, hide a major danger for public health.
While Tunisia has 12,000 beekeepers managing 163,000 hives in the context of traditional local beekeeping, a source of income for many farmers, it is involved in this illicit trade. These frelated products often contain active substances such as sildenafil or tadalafil, main components of viagra and cialis, drugs normally delivered on prescription.
Tunisia has already alerted in 2020
The problem is not new. In 2020, the Municipality of Ghomrasen, in the governorate of Tataouine, had already launched a sanitary alert concerning a brand of suspect honey from Sudan. The Tunisian authorities had then confirmed the presence of ingredients associated with the manufacture of Viagra, highlighting the health risks.
Since 2021, the French health authorities have reported several serious cases of side effects, including convulsions, brain edema and acute renal failure. Due to the unknown as to the quantity of adulteration and the doses consumed, French customs warn significant risks incurred by consumers.
The largest seizure was carried out at the port of Marseille last November, where 13 tonnes, or about 860,000 doses, were intercepted in a cargo from Malaysia. In June, the customs services in Lyon and Clermont-Ferrand also got their hands on nearly 25,000 doses in a warehouse.
