As a bee farmer and honey dealer, people have asked me several times how to differentiate between original and fake honey or diluted and undiluted honey
Honey, being the best alternative to sugar has really increased demand for the product. Knowing an original or fake honey has been the challenge because there are lot of adulterated verversionst there.
In this short article, I will be dealing with how to know if a honey you buy or intend to buy is original or fake. Enjoy the ride with me as I take you through the journey.
There are many ways for test the originality of honey. But before we go further i will like to redefine what people generally call fake honey.
Fake honey is the kind that has been mixed with other form of sweeteners either to increase the quantity or in order to thicken it.
Also before I go further I will love to correct a notion. Many people any honey that is not thick is not original.
That assumption is wrong. People also believe any honey that is not light in color or even dark is not original, these are also wrong assumptions. In the future, i will be writing on wrong assumptions about the originality of honey.
The viscosity of honey is dependent on the region or part of the country where it is produced; i am taking Nigerian honey as a case study here.
Honey in the south-eastern, south-south, and south-western part of the country has higher water content than those gotten from the northern part of the country.
Enough of the stories; watch out for future articles on honey to learn about the principles behind the difference in honey viscosities across the country.
How to differentiate between diluted and undiluted honey
There are mainly three ways to test for the originality of honey. One thing that worries people is that these techniques are traditional, meaning they have been in use for ages and have yet to be scientifically or generally accepted.
Notwithstanding, these techniques serves and work to a great extent, and that’s exactly what matters to us.
- Paper test: The paper test is the most popular kind of honey test among the Nigerian elite because it looks easy to carry out. To perform the test all you need do is to get an A4 paper, then get the honey sample.
Drop a bit of the sample on the paper and watch the under of the paper for about two minutes. If the spot where you drop the honey get wet, it simply means the honey is diluted and not pure.
- Match test or fire test: This test is another simple and fast test. To carry out this honey test, all you need do is to get a stick of match and dip it into your sample.
Wait a few seconds, then strike the match; if the match lights, the honey is undiluted, but if the match refuses to lit or the head is scattered, it’s a sign that the head of the match has become wet. Pure honey does not wet the head of a match.
- Water test: in this test all you need to do is to fetch water into a cup; preferably water with a normal temperature. Once you’ve got the water, all you need to do is drop a few drops of your honey into the water.
If the honey dissolves before getting to the base of the cup it simply means the honey is diluted or not pure.
Those are just the few trusted methods for testing your honey among the numerous ones that might be available out there. The best thing to do while trying to test a honey sample is to carry out all three tests on the honey; if the honey fails any then the honey is questionable.
Thank you for reading through my blog, do me a favor by sharing your thoughts and also sharing this post on your social media platforms so that other people can have access to it. Thank you again
I am in need of beesuit and a smoker. How do I get them.
Thank you for reading through the post. You can reach out to me through this number to make your order: 08032912347