In reality, those who delve into a degree of knowledge about the domain of Honeybees, and the intricate processes carried out by worker bees in the production of the extraordinary substance known as honey, would discover that existing and endorsed definitions fail to comprehensively encapsulate the essence of this natural elixir. Nevertheless, it remains imperative to establish a definition.
According to Codex, “Honey is a natural sweet substance produced by honey bees “Apis mellifera” from the nectar of plants or from secretions of living parts of plants or excretions of insects feeding on the living parts of plants.”
The bees collect it, and combine it with specific substances and enzymes of their own then they transform it by dehydrating it and, storing it in the honey comb to ripen and mature. Its precise compositional profile varies depending on the natural sources foraged by bees and it must be free of any natural or synthetic additives or it will be considered as a subject of adulteration.
Honey’s color varies from nearly colorless to deep reddish-black, its final physical texture may be either liquid or crystallized. It must be free of pollutants and pesticide residues as it contains a complex mixture of sugars, water, enzymes, organic acids, minerals, mineral salts, vitamins, amino acids, and various compounds that have yet to be characterized.
We recognize two types of Honey:
- Blossom Honey: or Nectar Honey, is the honey which comes from nectars of plants.
- Honeydew Honey: is the honey which comes mainly from excretions of plant sucking insects (Hemiptera) on the living parts of plants or secretions of living parts of plants.
We at BARARI, cannot consider pasteurized honey to be 100% natural, even if it passes laboratory tests. This stance is rooted in the recognition that exposing honey to elevated temperatures, even for brief durations, results in alterations in its fundamental chemical composition such as degradation of enzymatic activity, the deterioration of vitamins, and the degradation of other bioactive constituents. This compromises the therapeutic and nutritional attributes of honey.
It is imperative to underscore a vital point, when we assert that honey consists mainly of sugars such as glucose and fructose, with a minor proportion of sucrose and other sugars, it is essential to comprehend that these sugars are produced by worker bees from the mentioned natural sources.
These natural sugars are laden with minerals, mineral salts, vitamins, and possess the highest concentration of enzymes relative to any other natural substance. They are fundamentally distinct from industrial glucose or fructose, as well as refined table sugar. There exists no valid basis for comparison. Likewise, the water content in honey differs from regular water, while it primarily comes from the water content in nectar, which the bees collect from flowers and then partially evaporate as they transform it into honey. Nectar typically contains a high water content, and honeybees reduce this moisture content during the honey-making process. Honey’s moisture level is essential for its preservation because lower moisture levels inhibit the growth of microorganisms and prevent fermentation. Such an inequitable analogy should be firmly dismissed when contemplating this extraordinary elixir.
To understand the real meaning of honey, you need to visit “Let’s Fly With The Bee”, “KINGDOM OF BEES”
Quality of Honey
There are several factors that primarily determine the quality of honey:
- The environment in which the bees forage. Honey is of higher quality when the environment is mountainous and far from pollutants. Naturally, low level moisture content, this is evident in arid mountainous regions.
- The bee species. Bees come in various species and subspecies, including native and hybrid varieties, strong and weak colonies. The most common Bees to produce honey are known as “Apis millifera”, like other organisms, they are influenced by their surroundings. The production of honey by strong and healthy bees is undoubtedly far better than that produced by weak and sickly colonies. This impacts the quality of enzymes and other crucial substances that bees secret in order to transform nectar into mature honey. It also affects the bees’ ability to fly longer distances and thus obtain natural food sources more effectively, among other important factors that weaker and diseased bee populations lack. Native bees are better adapted to their original environment. In some hot countries that import bees for honey production, imported bees often perish entirely after harvesting season, which significantly impacts the quality of honey produced. This is an unhealthy phenomenon. For more information, you can look into the reasons for the decline of bee numbers in “Beekeeping Through Time… Is It Really Improving”
- The color of honey. Scientifically, it is established that honey with a darker color tends to have a higher concentration of organic mineral salts compared to lighter-colored honey, making it rich in alkaline value, and thus of utmost importance in determining the nutritional and therapeutic properties of honey. Nevertheless, all natural raw honey is beneficial. Some light honey types from specific floral sources may have therapeutic properties not found in dark honeys, but in general, dark honey is considered superior to light honey.
- The type of beehive is a matter of utmost importance. You can refer to the comparison we conducted between natural beehives and artificial beehives to understand the significance of this point specifically. “Beekeeping Through Time… Is It Really Improving”
- The floral source that bees forage. Some plants have therapeutic properties that are unique. However, there are common therapeutic and nutritional properties shared among all types of raw natural honey.
- Pollen content, it has been proven that vitamins in honey are associated with pollen grains naturally present in it. Therefore, ultra-filtration of honey depletes its vitamin content. This can be observed in clear honeys; the more naturally cloudy the honey is, the more it indicates its abundance with pollen grains.
- Honey container type, should be durable, capable for heat retention, thermal insulation, light insulation, tightly sealed, non-reactive with food, prevent leakage. In conclusion, honey is best stored in a dark place, at room temperature. For full details, kindly visit the featured research done by BARARI, “Jars and Food Containers”