AnnaMaria
Fake Honey Is Flooding the Market — Here’s What You Need to Know
In recent years, fake honey has been flooding the European market at alarming rates. A recent inspection by the Active Consumers organization found that 5 out of 10 popular honey brands failed to meet basic quality standards. The key criteria for real honey include:
- Water content: Must be below 20%
- Electrical conductivity: Should not exceed 0.8 mS/cm
- Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF): No more than 40 mg/kg
- Diastase activity: At least 8 Gote units
- Proline content: No less than 180 mg/kg
How Is Honey Being Faked?
There are two common ways honey gets adulterated:
- Dilution with glucose-fructose syrup: Increases volume and reduces production costs.
- Premature harvesting: Collecting honey too early results in higher water content and lower nutritional quality.
In both cases, what you find on store shelves might not be true natural honey.
Can You Spot Fake Honey at Home?
We looked into some of the most popular DIY honey tests circulating online. Here’s what they claim — and whether you should believe them:
- The Napkin Test
- Claim: Real honey stays in place; fake honey spreads and forms a wet ring.
- Reality: Partially true. This can sometimes indicate high water content, but liquid honeys like acacia may spread even if they’re genuine. Don’t rely on this test alone.
- The Hexagon Shape Test
- Claim: Shaking real honey under water forms hexagonal patterns.
- Reality: False. There’s no scientific proof for this. Honey simply sinks and dissolves slowly, regardless of quality.
- Ants Avoid Real Honey
- Claim: Ants won’t touch pure honey.
- Reality: Completely false. Ants love sugar, and they’ll flock to both real and fake honey.
- Density and Dissolution Test
- Claim: Real honey is thick, dissolves slowly in water, and contains a slow-moving air bubble when turned upside down.
- Reality: Sometimes true. This can suggest lower water content, but remember — the type of honey matters. Some are naturally more fluid.
The Final Verdict
No home test can guarantee your honey is 100% pure.
Honey is now one of the top three most commonly adulterated foods, alongside milk and olive oil. Modern counterfeits are incredibly sophisticated — they look, smell, and taste just like the real thing.
The only way to know for sure?
➡️ Laboratory testing.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. Always consult food safety experts or trusted authorities when in doubt about food authenticity.
