How to Check the Purity of Honey?

How do we check the purity of honey? It is not rocket science, but here are some simple tests you can carry out to verify its purity.

Check the Label
Check around the brand name, and the ingredients list (if there is one) for a mention of additives. The company should be required to list them if you are shopping in certain countries. If there are no mentions of additives, buy the honey.



The Water Glass Test
Get a glass of water. This and a tablespoon of honey are all you need for the first test. Empty the honey into the water. If the honey is impure, it will dissolve in the water- the most common additive to honey is syrup of jaggery, which dissolves. If it is pure, the honey will stick together, and sink as a solid lump to the bottom of the glass.

The Flame Test
Get a lighter and a candle with a cotton wick. This test is better if you don't have as much honey to spare. Dip the cotton wick of the candle into a bit of the honey, and shake off the excess. Attempt to light the wick. If it burns, then that is completely pure honey. If it refuses to burn, then the presence of water is not allowing the wick to burn. (If there is only a very small amount of honey on the wick, though, it might still burn. It will produce a crackling sound, and it would be best to blow out the wick and try again if it does, this time with more honey.)

The Absorption Test

Pour a few drops of honey on blotting paper and observe whether or not it is absorbed. If it's absorbed, the honey's not pure. If you don't have blotting paper, pour a little bit of honey on a white cloth, then wash the cloth. If there is any stain left by the honey, it is probably not pure