Honey - Sweeteners: Nutritional Aspects, Applications, and Production Technology - page 121

5.2 USeS

Honeyhasbeenusedthroughouthistory(beyonditsuseasahumanfood)asatalismanandas
asweetnesssymbol.Archaeologistshavefoundthathumansstartedhuntingforhoneymorethan
10,000yearsago(asseeninMesolithicrockpaintingsinValencia,Spain).AncientEgyptianswere
usinghoneyincakes,andintheMiddleEast,itwasusedforembalmingthedead.Weindtheart
ofbeekeepingmentionedinancientChina,aswellastheimportanceofbeekeepingboxquality.
Honeybees were also found to be cultivated in ancient Maya (Central America) for culinary
purposesandhealthuses,forexample,asointmentforrashes,burns,andsorethroats.Honeyalso
makesappearancesinthehistoryofmanyoftheworld'sreligions:

• HoneyisasymbolfortheNewYearamongJewishpeople.TheHebrewBiblereferstohoney,and

theBookofJudges(Samson)describesaswarmofbeesandhoneyinthecarcassoflion.

• In the festival of Madhu Purnima celebrated by the Buddhists, honey plays an important role,

becauseamonkeybroughtBuddhahoneytoeatinthewilderness.

• AccordingtotheChristianNewTestament,JohntheBaptisthaslonglivedinthewildernesseating

wildhoneyandlocusts.

• In Islam, the Qur'an, through the Prophet Muhammad, recommends honey as a nutritional and

healthyfoodandcontainsanentirechaptercalledAnNahl(thehoneybee).

InWesterncivilization,“honey”isatermofendearmentthatcanbeusedforcasualacquain-
tancesorforlovedones.InRussianandotherEuropeanlanguagesand topics,bearsaredepictedas
eatinghoney,thewordiscoinedfromthenounmeaninghoney,andthatisthereasonhoneyisoften
soldinbear-shapedjars.Honeyisoftenusedinbakeries,confectioneries,commercialbeverages,
wines,andbeers.

5.3 hONeY FOrMatION

Honeyisstoredbybeesasafoodinordertobeusedwhenfreshfoodsourcesarescarceduring
badweather.Therearethreekindsofbeesinthehives(Whitmyre2006):

• Asinglefemalequeen

• Aseasonallychangingnumberofmaledronesthatfertilizethequeen

• Approximately30,000femaleworkerbees

Theworkerbeescollectthenectarandbringittothehive,whereitispartiallydigestedinthe
bees'stomachsuntiltheproductreachesadesiredquality.Then,itisstoredinhoneycombcells,
whichareeithercreatedbythebeesorartiiciallymade.Insidethehive,aprocessistakingplace:
beesfantheirwings,enhancingtheevaporationofthewaterinthenectar,whichconcentratesthe
sugarandgreatlyincreasestheshelflifebypreventingfermentation.

5.4 hONeY FOrMS

Ingeneral,honeyisfoundinvariousforms(NationalHoneyBoard2011a),suchasliquidhoney,
cut-comb honey, crystallized natural honey, and creamed honey. These forms are described as
follows:

• Liquidhoneyisextractedfromcombsbycentrifuge,gravity,and/orstrainingandiseasilyusedin

bakeryandconfectionaryproducts.