Cold meats with honey, fake regional specialties beware!

Study Time:

3 minutes

Nougat from Montelimar, Corsican charcuterie, or even local honey… these local specialties occupy the stalls of the summer markets. Our advice is to make sure you buy genuine products. And at a reasonable price…

Ah, regional specialties! When you return home, it’s tempting to bring back some of the people you stayed with to extend the vacation a little. The problem is that their limited local production often falls short of tourist demand… and the risk of shipping on products that aren’t really local is high. Our advice is to avoid falling into the trap.

Honey: Avoid ambiguous signs of origin

Another star product of the summer markets, but its French production (about 33,500 tons) does not cover consumer needs (45,000 tons). As a result, the import of Asian honey is increasing. Advantage of markets: There is an offer offered by local beekeepers, many of whom have other seasonal activities, selling honey is difficult to earn less than 300 bees. Also, avoid ingredients from different European countries that are often found in supermarkets. However, minimal awareness is required. First on the price: “Production costs for an operator are between six and eight euros per kilo,” underlines Vincent Brossel. The price of artisanal French honey made exclusively from floral honey is questionable at less than 10 euros per kilo. Any ambiguous indication of this category should be avoided, as regards origin (“local honey”, “local honey”, etc.) and quality (“natural honey”, “100% honey”). The place of harvest and the name of the producer must be mentioned, as well as the origin of the flowers collected by the bees. Note that monofloral honey (lavender, thyme, acacia, sunflower, etc.) must contain at least 70% nectar from this flower. Finally, for those who want reassurance, some honeys display quality labels, a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) over a large area and therefore with different flavors (Cévennes, Provence, Alsace) or a Protected Origin, a small area with strong distinctiveness (Corsica and Sabine des Vosges).

Nougat from Montélimar: Not to be confused with plain nougat

This summer, if you’re heading south on holiday on the A7 motorway or returning at the end of your holiday in the north, you’ll probably stop at one of the two rest stops in Montélimar (26). There you will find two shops that welcome the last twelve nougat producers in the city, still producing these famous confections according to the rules of the art (Saubert & Guillot, Arnaud Souberon, Les Trois Ides, etc.). Although the minimum regulation calls for a 15% dried fruit filling, Montélimar nougat’s specifications require a minimum of 30% sweet almonds and 25% honey relative to the weight of the sweet ingredients. And the addition of glucose, gelatin or other questionable ingredients is not allowed in the meringue dough. “Alas, even in our region, fake nougats are legion,” warns Marie-Claude Stoffel, president of the Montélimar Nougat Producers Association and CEO of Chabert & Gillette. The industry is impatiently waiting to get its IGP at European level to distinguish itself from dubious products. However, since honey and almonds are not produced on site, PDO is not possible. Note that if you are in the south, you can find a good nougat from Provence that is more runny and elastic than Montelimar. Usually calculated between 30 and 60 euros per kilo. Beyond 70 euros, it starts to get fishy… A list of quality producers for Montélimar is available on the Aventure du nougat website.

Cold meats and cheeses: test the seriousness of merchants

Stands serving cold meats and cheeses are always popular in markets. Some brands like Henoff Pate are also playing on local ties. Logic. Gastronomes love these specialties. Mountain sausage, country ham, artisanal cheese… It’s a great opportunity to devour any of the cocoas, with information written in chalk on the slates to create local color. Fortunately, there are ways to detect them. First, don’t hesitate to chat with the seller to ask where these products come from and what’s in them. If he is unsure of himself, it is a bad start. Likewise, the manner in which the stall is run and the manner of serving provide clues. “Poorly cut cheeses with crumbs are a sign of a lack of professionalism,” points out Véronique Riches-Lerouge, creator of the Fromages de Terroirs association. The appearance of the products is also important. For example, be careful with large-cut cheeses, which may be downgraded pieces from the quality label because they don’t conform to specifications. They are good but will not sell for the labeled cheese price. For their part, sausages should not be too red in appearance, not too salty or acidic in taste. Finally, there are the labels. The more goods there are, the more industrial production is. If quality labels are displayed, be careful: some cold meats and cheeses benefit from AOP and others from IGP. First, from raw material (breeding pigs, cows, goats, etc.) to product production, all stages are carried out in a very limited geographical area. The latter requires only one step, often conversion, and the portions are often larger. This can also pose a problem, as in Corsica, where AOP cold meats made exclusively from pigs raised on the Isle of Beauty work alongside IGP cold meats, whose meat may come from elsewhere. “Enough to lead to deplorable confusion”, says Véronique Riches-Lerouge, author of a book on these different appeals (Les Labels Hostaged by Eric Bonnier, published).

Find out about other episodes of this summer series, starting with food scams sold in markets, and connected to handicrafts.