Storage and preservation of honey

Honey is rich in nutrition, health care, and has a sweet, fragrant taste. However, because honey is a liquid substance, various components are all in aqueous solution, improper storage may lead to quality problems. If its nutrients or aromatic substances are lost, it will reduce the nutritional value and health care function, and the taste will go bad, so the preservation of honey is very important.

The reasons for the change of honey quality are very complicated, and some physical and chemical changes may occur in various components under certain conditions. For example, sucrose can be broken down into glucose and fructose, this change is beneficial. However,

Then there will be further changes, glucose and fructose can be decomposed to produce alcohol, and then oxidized to produce acid. Glucose and fructose can also be produced after dehydration (hydroxymethyl furfural has been included in the quality index). All these are bad for fresh-keeping. Not only sugars, but all kinds of ingredients in honey may be decomposed, combined, oxidized, reduced, condensed and volatilized at a certain temperature and within a certain period of time. And other phenomena. These changes have changed the original natural ingredients of honey. For example, ATALLH et al found that the total amount of amino acids in clover honey samples stored at room temperature (25 ℃ / 2 ℃) for one year decreased. The samples in the two regions decreased by 66.21% and 57.655%, respectively. Studies such as TVANOV found that when Robinia pseudoacacia honey was stored at 15 ℃-25 ℃ for 4 and 12 months, amylase activity decreased by 2.5% and 34.5%, and the total acidity increased. Honey itself changes slowly and gradually, and once there is microbial reproduction in honey, the situation may be more serious. According to the research report of TATEO, the sugars, organic acids, amino acids, polyphenols and volatile components in honey will be reduced due to the resistance to hyperosmotic yeast.

Some of the changes that take place in honey can not be identified by the senses. The most common problems are the sour taste of the honey that can be identified by the senses.

Different varieties of honey have different acidity. Generally speaking, when the acidity is below 3, you will not find sour taste. If the acidity exceeds 4, you will have sour taste. Some taste found more sour honey, the composition of which may have changed. It's not fresh honey anymore.

If you buy honey in June and store it in an ordinary warehouse, it is not surprising that there may be obvious sour taste in some containers by October. Because some of the honey produced now contains more water, the temperature is higher in July, August and September, and the composition of honey changes, especially microbial reproduction, so that the acid content of honey increases, which may change the taste of honey. If it is stored until June of the following year, or even if it continues to be stored, the acidity of honey will inevitably continue to increase. Serious can become sour honey. Sour honey has lost its original flavor and replaced it with sour taste and other peculiar smells.

Compared with many nutrition and health products, honey is one of its characteristics. Once it becomes sour honey, not only the nutrition and health care effect will be damaged, but also some ingredients in sour honey may be disadvantageous to the human body. Therefore, it is very important to improve the storage method of honey.

There have been many scientific reports on the storage and preservation of honey. For example, KAUSHIK studied the effects of honey stored at different times and temperatures and the addition of potassium bisulfite on honey. The total amount of soluble solids and acidity in honey were determined. It is mentioned that the acidity of honey stored for 6 months increases from 2.27 to 3.05. after heating for 60 ℃ and adding potassium bisulfite, the storage temperature has no effect on the total amount and acidity of capacitive solids. The microbial content of unheated honey was the highest (6.5 × 102 colonies). After heating, the microbial content of honey stored at 5 ℃ was the lowest. For example, after studying the storage of peak honey, TATEO suggested that honey should be stored below 10 ℃, and pasteurized honey could be stored at 18 ℃ 24 ℃.

Referring to the results of various studies, it can be seen that the storage temperature of honey is one of the keys. Under the condition of low temperature, the speed of various chemical reactions in aqueous solution may be reduced, and some may even stop, which is beneficial to maintain its original fresh state. at the same time, low temperature can inhibit the growth and reproduction of some microorganisms. reduce or eliminate fermentation.

According to these conditions, honey should be preserved at low temperature after being shaken. Batches of honey are best stored in cryogenic warehouses. If you want to dehydrate and sterilize the honey, it is best to carry out it in advance. Sterilized and dehydrated honey is more resistant to storage.

It is possible to increase the cost by keeping honey fresh. However, if it can be of high quality, good price or small profits and quick turnover, it will still be beneficial to the operators. For consumers, although they may pay a slightly higher price, they can buy high-quality honey with good taste and good nutrition and health care effect. The preservation and storage methods of honey should be actively studied and developed.