# How to tell real Honey from fake? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 17, 2024, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194 "2024-01-17T00:33:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/1 "2024-01-17T00:33:15Z")
Adulterated food is becoming common. And Honey is often mixed with or replaced by other sweeteners. Is there a way to tell the difference? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/2 "2024-01-17T00:39:37Z")
I used to have a local bee keeper that sold honey. I too am concerned about grocery store honey. I buy raw, and unfiltered. Aunt Sue’s is one brand. I think that style is more likely to be authentic. It certainly looks and tastes like the local honey I used to buy. But who really knows if corn syrup is added? ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/3 "2024-01-17T00:40:50Z")
But is there a home/kitchen way to test the stuff? ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/4 "2024-01-17T01:14:05Z")
Take some of the honey and try to dissolve it in water. If the honey has been adulterated it will break up fairly quickly because it was made with water-soluble ingredients like sugar or corn syrup. Pure honey will dissolve very slowly or not at all. It’s not foolproof, for example if molasses is an additive it won’t dissolve any more than real honey would. But a “real” test would need a laboratory. Another suggestion I saw is that if you add vinegar to honey and it starts to foam, then there is an additive that is reacting with the vinegar. Real honey won’t react at all. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/5 "2024-01-17T01:28:45Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Take some of the honey and try to dissolve it in water. If the honey has been adulterated it will break up fairly quickly because it was made with water-soluble ingredients like sugar or corn syrup. Pure honey will dissolve very slowly or not at all. Real honey will dissolve just as easily as any other saturated solution of fructose and glucose. Chemically, aside from trace impurities, it’s almost identical to HFCS. Really, this is why we have labeling laws. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/6 "2024-01-17T01:29:12Z")
Honey remembers the honeycomb. Put a small amount on a flat dish and shimmy it around a bit, if it’s real honey you’ll see a honeycomb pattern emerge in the surface of the honey. I know, sounds fake, but it’s true! I’ve seen it done when I doubted! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/7 "2024-01-17T01:33:33Z")
Yep. Label. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/8 "2024-01-17T01:34:54Z")
Fiddle. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/9 "2024-01-17T01:56:57Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Real honey will dissolve just as easily as any other saturated solution of fructose and glucose. Thank you for the correction. I’m sure that I’ve dissolved real honey in hot water for tea, but thought that might have been a result of the high heat. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/10 "2024-01-17T02:01:55Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Really, this is why we have labeling laws. Yeah, wouldn’t the people who put additives into honey have to list those ingredients on what they sell? My answer: be sure to buy the bear. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/11 "2024-01-17T02:08:33Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > Yeah, wouldn’t the people who put additives into honey have to list those ingredients on what they sell? You assume those selling fake honey, fake olive oil, etc will label them truthfully. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/12 "2024-01-17T02:22:09Z")
Which, again, is why we have labeling laws, instead of just trusting them. FDA inspectors check. They can’t check everyone, but they check enough that it’s a serious disincentive to the fakers. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/13 "2024-01-17T02:36:42Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Which, again, is why we have labeling laws Call me cynical. But I feel there’s a good possibility that the laws regarding how honey and “honey” must be labeled may have been written by the National Honey Adulterating Association. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/14 "2024-01-17T02:50:38Z")
At this point I just assume all cheap honey from a major grocery store is going to be adulterated. I try to buy honey from local farm stands or other local shops that sell locally harvested and labled honey. Sure, it’s possible the local producer is playing games, too, but seems less likely. The local stuff is darker and also tastes better (and is more expensive). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/15 "2024-01-17T02:57:57Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Really, this is why we have labeling laws. I was surprised to see a honey bear type bottle labeled as honey/corn syrup mixture. Dollar General crap. A neighbor has hives. We buy his amazingly expensive honey just because it’s cool to use honey from our horse pasture and another neighbor’s apple orchards. He also makes maple syrup using our trees as well as his own and gifts us a tiny bottle which we treasure. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/16 "2024-01-17T03:29:28Z")
Raw honey crystallizes and gets very thick. I’ve put my bottles in a big pot of hot water. About 150F It can take hours to slowly heat the honey and dissolve the crystals. My dad warned me to never over heat the honey. You don’t want to cook it. It will be fine for a year or so before the crystals come back. Honey in plastic bottles poses challenges. I buy honey in quarts or gallons in glass that can be heated. I can’t recall grocery store honey fully crystallizing unless it was several years old. That could be another way to tell if it’s pure honey. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/17 "2024-01-17T03:46:32Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > A neighbor has hives. Has he tried Benadryl? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/18 "2024-01-17T03:57:14Z")
Home grown honey is likely to be honey 100%. I mean, else why would they cut it? I suppose some greedy assholes would. I don’t see it being a high incident(guess). Store bought honey. You have to trust the ingredient label. If you can’t, well, pass it up. If you gather your own, you know it’s 100% and you have my respect as well. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/19 "2024-01-17T05:45:22Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I can’t recall grocery store honey fully crystallizing unless it was several years old. That could be another way to tell if it’s pure honey. I don’t know if you’d consider it “grocery store honey,” but I buy a local brand that’s pretty commonly sold in grocery stores around here, and it crystallizes after a couple of months. It is raw, not heated or pasteurized. Pasteurized honey doesn’t crystallize easily, and it’s runnier than raw. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194/20 "2024-01-17T05:50:11Z")
It took me a minute to realize. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-tell-real-honey-from-fake/996194.md?page=2)