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Taylan Samancı, Beekeeping Specialist Agricultural Engineer (M.S.), pointed out that applications such as heat treatment and excessive filtration applied to honey destroy the nutritional value of honey and said, “Eat products with ‘raw honey’ on the label.”
Member of International Honey Commission and the International Standards Organization Turkey representative of bee products, Taylan Samancı stated that honey is a natural, antibacterial and nonperishable food which can be consumed directly while taken from the hive.
Samancı said, “Honey can naturally solidify shortly after it is obtained from the hive, in other words, it can crystallize. This is known as the solidification, freezing or crystallization of the honey among the public; people think that additional sugar is included to honey. In order to prevent this situation, which is only a physical change, high temperature treatment is applied in the range of 65-76 degrees Celsius, which we call pasteurization, for the honey. However it is not necessary to apply this process to honey, because the raw honey is suitable for consumption as it is taken from the hive and definitely does not deteriorate. Applications such as heat treatment and excessive filtration applied to honey destroy the nutritional value of honey.”
What is the meaning of raw honey?
Emphasizing that raw honey is not filtered enough to hold pollens and pasteurization, it means natural honey that is offered for consumption as it is taken from the hive, Samancı noted, “Pasteurization leads to a decrease in the valuable components of natural enzymes, vitamins and phenolic flavonoid structure in honey. Filtration process decreases pollen. Since the raw honey is not pasteurized and filtered to keep the pollen, its nutrient content is preserved with all its naturalness and purity.”
Attention should be paid to the expression ‘raw honey’
Indicating that many of the honeys that are transparent, clear and long-lasting without crystallization, such as glass, seen on the market shelves are pasteurized, Samancı gave the following information: “So it is overheated and there is no information on the labels about this heating and filtration process. Consumers do not know about this. They suppose it is unprocessed natural honey, but the truth is not so. The consumer should pay attention to the label of ‘raw honey’ when buying honey because the raw honeys are not heated.”
