Fake or imitation honey is honey-like solution

Fake or imitation honey is honey-like solution. Made without the help of bees or use sugar as nectar. Have generally the same as the original honey color. Because it is difficult for lay people to differentiate between honey and artificial honey. In companies that have received production licenses will include a description of products so that it can be seen whether it is genuine or synthetic honey. Synthetic honey outstanding of which is honey melon, pumpkin watermelon, and dates.
Honey has long been widely produced fake people. By mixing glucose with sugar, fruit, flavor and dye. Fake honey in the laboratory will be identified by chemical analysis. The content of HMF (5-hydroxy methyl furfural) with maximum 3mg/100gram, the activity of the enzyme diastase content of at least 5 and the ratio of potassium (K) and sodium (Na) in the original honey around 4.0 while the fake honey from 0.005 to 0.1.
Levels of testing the authenticity of honey is not easy, in addition to the cost is also expensive. It takes advanced tools to detect the presence or absence of a mixture with other sugars in honey. Meanwhile, the efficacy of honey for the obvious health benefits, making the rogue trader to have a mix with sugar cane or palm sugar. For the average person, issued by the sweet taste of honey and mix difficult to distinguish genuine. With the look and feel, honey experts will be able to distinguish between the original and the fake honey. One of the most practical test is to use a pH meter. False honey typically has a pH of 2.4 to 3.3 or above 5, while honey has a pH of 3.4 to 4.5. To find out more can be done in a laboratory test of honey content. One of the laboratory where the testing of honey found in Bogor.
Honey in Indonesia itself is divided into two, namely the result of honey bees and wild honey livestock. The definition of livestock honey is honey is taken from the flower nectar of certain trees such as rambutan, kelengkeng, durian and so on. When the trees are flowering, then digiringlah bees that are already in the boxes to the tree plantation. Characteristic aroma of honey is honey livestock in accordance with the nectar of tree infestation.
Meanwhile, forest honey, more varied nectar sucked from flowers for a variety of trees. Forest honey is better known because more nutrients are made up of minerals and vitamins. Type of wild honey bees would be better than honey bees livestock. The best type of honey it will not freeze even if placed in the freezer for months because the water level is below 20%.
Nevertheless, both wild honey and honey livestock have weaknesses. When honey is harvested in the rainy season will contain lots of rain, while the properties of its own rain water is acidic. In addition to causing more liquid, honey is also oxidized the air becomes more acidic and will be fermented. Consequently, the gas can break through the bottle cap. Ants were not approached because of the sour-sour taste sweet. When the honey of this type put into the freezer will be easily frozen, even including the original.
Actually, there are several ways to determine the authenticity of honey scientifically. For example, by carbon analysis, microscopic analysis, hydroxymethylfurfural analysis, analysis of the polarity of light and last test of acidity. Of the five ways, four of the first to use tools that are quite expensive and specific expertise. So, not everyone can do it. While the acidity test, a test is fairly easy and relatively inexpensive. But, still requires a deep knowledge of the honey. If not, it will be difficult to distinguish where the original honey, honey mixture, and honey-made (artificial honey).
In developing the habit of testing the authenticity of honey, which indicated light when burned with cigarette lighters, eggs can be cooked, not seeped when dripped on newsprint, and so on. The test is actually not one hundred percent true, still need proof through the laboratory.
Actually there are other ways that could become a benchmark and be done by everyone, namely with a drop of honey in the water on a white porcelain plate. When the plate rocked to the left and right, then before it is mixed with honey to form a hexagon or honeycomb. The longer it lasts hexagon shape, meaning the better the nutrients contained within honey is honey alias. The faster the hexagon shape is fading, it is clear that the honey mixture, because nutrients had decreased significantly.
Another way that may be easily done is the same as above, but the plate did not shake it. Quite taken any action. The original honey that has a low water content will not get water on the plate becomes turbid. While honey has been mixed or artificial honey will gradually make the water turbid. Do ants can be a benchmark to determine the honey is authentic or not? In essence, the nature of the ants like sweet things, including existing sweetness of honey. However, the more viscous honey (water content slightly) more difficult for ants to detect the location of the sweet taste of honey is due to molecules that exist in the honey remains intact, not broken. Conversely, when the water level is high (above 20%), then the ants easily approached.