Honey - Sweeteners: Nutritional Aspects, Applications, and Production Technology - page 124

Polyloralhoneyiswellknownaswildlowerhoneyderivedfromthenectarsofvariouslowers.
Thetaste(aromaandlavor)maybevaried,dependingontheprevalentlowersource.However,
manycommerciallyavailablehoneysaredifferentincolor,lavor,anddensity,andtheirproperties
dependontheirgeographicorigin,forexample,avarietyofhoneylavorsfromTexasversushoney
fromthemountainsofGreece.

5.6.2 Classiication by Nonloral Secretions

When,insteadofnectarasfood,beesaretakingthesweetsecretionsofaphidsandotherplantsap-
suckinginsects,thehoneyiscalled“honeydew.”Thistypeofhoneyisdarkorbrownincolorwiththe
richlavorofstewedfruit,anditisnotassweetasthelowerhoneys.Suchhoneyscomefrompine,ir,and
othersimilarresintreesfoundinGermany,Bulgaria,NorthernCalifornia,Greece,andothercountries
(Gounari2006).InGreece,honeydewconstitutesthelargestpercentageofthecountry'sannualhoney
production.Honeydew,althoughpopular,hassomecomplicationsanddangerstothebeesasaresultofits
largerproportionofindigestibles,whichcancausedysenteryinthebeesandthedeathoftheircolonies.

5.6.3 Classiication by processing and packaging

Honeycanbesubjectedtovariousprocessingmethodsandpackagingtechniquesbeforeitis
soldtomarketplacesunderthefollowingnames:

• Crystallizedhoney(granulatedhoney) .Thisishoneyinwhichglucosehasbeencrystallizedover

timeandcanbebroughtbacktosolutioninliquidformbyheatingatalowtemperature,approxi-
mately50°C(120°F;Tosietal.2004).

• Pasteurizedhoney .Thishoneyispasteurizedtodestroyyeastcellsandavoidmicrocrystallizationinthe

honey;however,excessiveheatmayresultinqualitydeteriorationbecauseofincreasesinhydroxymethyl-
furfurallevelsanddecreasesinenzyme(e.g.,diastase)activity,whichdarkensthenaturalcoloranddete-
rioratesodor,lavor,andoverallacceptability(Subramanian,Hebbar,andRastogi2007).

• Rawhoney .Thishoneyiscalledraw,becauseitisobtainedbyextractionfromthebeehiveswithout

anyadditionalprocessingtreatmentorisminimallyprocessed.Itmaycontainsomesmallparticles
ofwaxandpollen(Prescott,Harley,andKlein1999).

• Strainedhoney .Thistypeofhoneyhaspassedthroughmeshtoremovepiecesofwax,propolis,and

defectmaterialswithoutremovingmineralsorenzymes.

• Ultrailtered honey . This honey has been processed by iltration under pressure and low heating

(65°C-77°Cor150°F-170°F)torecoveralltheextraneoussolids.Itisclearandhasalongershelf
life(LaGrange1991).

• Ultrasonicatedhoney .Thistypehasbeenprocessedbyultrasonication(anonthermalprocessing).

Thistypeofhoneyreducesthedangeroffermentationasaresultofyeastcelldestruction.

• Whippedhoney .Thisisalsocalledcreamed,churned,spun,candied,andfondanthoney.Thishoney

hasbeenprocessedtocreatealargenumberofsmallcrystalstopreventcrystallization.

• Driedhoney .Moistureisextractedfromtheliquidtocreateasolidhoney,whichisusuallyusedin

garnishingdesserts.

• Comb or cut-comb honey . This is the honey in the honeybees' wax comb collected in wooden

frames.Thecombisthencutoutinchunksandpackaged.

• Chunkhoney .Thisishoneythatispackagedaspiecesofcombimmersedinliquidhoney.

5.7 NUtraCeUtICaL aSpeCtS

Honeygradingisbasedonvariousfactors,includingwatercontent,aroma,lavorclarity,and
absence ofdefects,asindicatedbyUSDAstandards.Thequalityofhoneycanbegradedbythe