Why honey turns white: causes of plaque during storage, can it be eaten

For a person who is far from beekeeping, when buying honey, it is important to purchase a quality product. Many people wonder why honey turns white during storage, a crystalline coating appears on the surface. What to do with such a product, whether it can be eaten or should be thrown away, whether it loses its useful qualities, this is a detailed story today.

Why honey turns white

A plaque in a jar of honey does not look very aesthetically pleasing, so many people are frightened to find a container with white crystals on the surface among their supplies. Don't be alarmed as this is a natural release of glucose during storage.

If honey retains its usual taste and aroma, it has no signs of fermentation (foam on the surface, bubbles and the characteristic smell of mash), which happens when buying an unripe product, then it is of high quality, without impurities. The formation of a whitish layer on the surface indicates a low moisture content of the treat: the lower the humidity, the higher the quality of the product.

If honey turns white on top, it means that it is stored correctly. Glucose crystals form bizarre shapes that look like flowers or large snowflakes. Beekeepers sometimes call this frost pattern.

Process Features

The formation of a whitish coating is called flowering, a layer forms on the surface of the product or at the points of contact of the product with the walls of the dish. It can appear at the bottom or in the thickness of the bee candy. The plaque is especially noticeable when storing honey in glass jars.

Sweetness consists of:

fructose;
glucose;
sucrose;
vitamins (C, K, B1, B2, B6);
folic acid.

Bee gift with a high glucose content crystallizes faster, the crystals are large. The second factor in flowering sweetness is the presence of dextrins. This is the general name for the polysaccharides formed as a result of the breakdown of starch contained in flower nectar. Their number in the product increases if the bees collected honeydew or honeydew.

White coating is formed near the walls of the dishes, crystals may appear in the depth of the product, when heated, they completely dissolve. The less water in the sweetness, the more likely it is to bloom. The optimal temperature for honey storage is from -5 to +20 °С.

It can be stored outside of the refrigerator. The drier the air in the room, the higher the likelihood of a quality product blooming.

Keep away from sunlight, in a dark place. In a cold room, the crystallization process is faster.

There are varieties of bee honey very light, almost white (slightly yellowish or greenish) shade. White varieties include sweetness obtained from linden, sweet clover, alfalfa, amaranth, and cotton. The most valuable is the white Bashkir product, which has a large number of useful properties and is used in the treatment of colds, throat problems, and increased fatigue.

Can I eat this honey?

Since flowering is a sign of high quality bee sweets, you can eat it without fear.Heating relieves honey of sugared areas, but at the same time it loses its beneficial properties. That is why experts do not advise adding honey to hot tea. If eating it is unpleasant, you can use the bee gift for baking, preparing delicious refreshing drinks, for cosmetic masks.

Important: when heated above +42 °C, honey loses its beneficial properties.

If flowering does not occur during long-term storage, this is a reason to doubt the quality of the purchased sweet, perhaps there is too much water in it or the product was sold unripe. In the case when the product is covered with a white coating, this is a sign of the correct content and high quality of the purchase.

Common misconceptions

Many believe that the appearance of a white coating in the jar is a sign that the bees were fed sugar, or these are traces of royal jelly.

The presence of sugar is determined by heating the sweet. Natural, without the addition of sugar, it does not burn. In another case, it changes color to brown and acquires the smell of caramel. The presence of starch is checked with a drop of iodine. If it turns blue when added to the product, you should refrain from buying.

Even fresh honey is thick and heavy. The weight of a liter jar is 1.3-1.5 kilograms. If it is less, then the sweetness is diluted with water to increase the volume. Each seller on the market must have an apiary passport, you can require it before buying, but it is better to purchase the product from trusted people.

Honey is an amazing and useful product given to us by nature. Scientists have not yet been able to fully recreate its composition in artificial conditions. The ability to choose and store it correctly, not to be afraid of natural processes, allows you to enjoy a unique taste.