PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Philippine -- Mayor Edward Hagedorn ordered Tuesday the confiscation of all honey products, sold mostly to tourists and labeled as "green honey," following the discovery of an illegal manufacturing syndicate in the city’s outskirts over the weekend.

"There is no such thing as green honey. It is a scam and it has reached alarming proportions because apparently these people have started producing the so-called green honey, even using shoe dye," Hagedorn told the Philippine Daily Inquirer (parent company of INQUIRER.net).

Hagedorn has ordered the filing of criminal charges against five persons from Barangay (village) Matahimik who were caught by the city monitoring group manufacturing the fake honey products Saturday.

City officials identified those arrested as Loida Yapla, Yolanda Chavez, Meriam Javier, Saning Javier and Arnie Garay.

Green honey products are being sold in market stalls and labeled by manufacturers as having been produced from a special beehive found in mangrove trees.

Hagedorn said an investigation by the city government's beekeeping culture project personnel showed the syndicate has been producing the fake products out of water and sugar colored with shoe dye and mixed in large fish bins.

"We got alarmed by reports coming from local and foreign tourists who have complained about the fake products being sold openly around the city. This is a big concern for us because of its negative impact on the city's booming tourism sector," Hagedorn said.