Advances in Honey
Adulteration Detection
drates, water, enzymes, amino acids,
pigments, variable amounts of sugar-tolerant yeasts, pollen, traces of vitamins, organic acids and wax and
probably crystals of dextrose hydrate)
are due to maturation of the honey;
some are added by the bees, and
some are derived from the plants.
However, honey from the same floral source can also vary due to seasonal climatic variations or to a
different geographic origin.
Aside from the definition of
honey in the Codex Alimentarius
(1981), there are additional definitions in the regulations of many
countries and the European Union
(EU). Various physical types (pressed,
centrifuged and drained) and forms
(comb, chunk, crystallized or granulated, creamed and heat-processed)
of honey are on the market.
The European Commission (EC)
has adopted a proposal to amend the
Council Directive 74/ 409/EEC concerning honey.1 This Directive,
which lays down common rules for
the composition and manufacture of
honey, will provide information
about the product’s “floral or vegetable origin, being stated if the
product comes essentially from the
indicated source and possesses its
organoleptic, physicochemical and
microscopic characteristics; regional,
