How long can honey be stored at home?

• About honey

Many lovers of such a useful bee product as honey are wondering how long honey is stored, under what conditions, what the container and temperature should be. This topic is very important and relevant for the reason that there are many secrets and subtleties in it.

Everyone knows that honey is an organic, natural and very healthy product due to the presence of useful substances in it: sucrose, trace elements, minerals, organic acids, fructose, vitamins B and C, glucose. For this reason, it is very important to preserve in this product the properties that nature has endowed it with.

Honey storage space

A very important condition is to choose a place in that part of the house where it will be most convenient, and most importantly, without harm to this product. It is recommended to choose a place based on the following indicators :

1. Darkness. Honey does not like being exposed to direct sunlight. Under their influence, it can quickly lose its healing properties. If you leave honey on a balcony or windowsill for several days, it will soon turn into a simple carbohydrate mixture.
2. Dryness. If the room where you are going to store this beekeeping product is very humid, this can lead to a decrease in value and souring of the product. This is due to the fact that the liquid level in the product will increase. The optimal humidity level at which honey can be stored is 60–80%.
3. There should be no strong odors nearby. Honey should not be kept near food or substances that have a strong pungent odor. This is due to the fact that it has the property of very quickly absorbing the odors that are around it. This applies to both products and building materials.
4. Temperature. When choosing a place to store honey, it is very important what the temperature will be there.

The conditions listed above are suitable for premises such as a pantry or cellar. But, unfortunately, the apartment does not have such rooms. And here the question arises: where then can this healing bee product be stored? Perfect for this:

1. Fridge.
2. Cabinet on a loggia or balcony.
3. Cabinets in the kitchen, located away from heat sources (radiators and stoves).

The most preferred of all the listed places in the apartment is the refrigerator . It maintains moisture and temperature. The most important thing here is to ensure that the container in which the honey is stored is tightly closed and the honey does not absorb any foreign odors.

How and where to store it correctly

The place where honey is stored must have special conditions. For example, it does not tolerate sunlight, since it will heat the jar, and this will lead to the destruction of beneficial substances in it, including the enzyme inhibin, which is responsible for the antimicrobial properties of this product. Therefore, the best place to store honey is in a cellar or basement, if the humidity level is suitable.

There is no difference in how to store linden honey and rapeseed honey. But honey with beebread needs to be stored a little differently.

For example, in order to maximize the shelf life of beebread, you need to dilute it with honey in a ratio of 1:2 and send it to a dark, cool room with a humidity level of not 15%. But it’s worth dwelling separately on the temperature and containers where to store honey.

Watch the video about the secret of long-term storage of honey:

How to store honey in honeycombs

How to store honey in combs Many people prefer to buy honey in combs.
Of course, such a product is much healthier, but it requires special storage conditions. Therefore, it is very important today to know how to store honey in honeycombs. First of all, it should be said that natural “packaging” will not allow honey to crystallize for a whole year. But unsuitable humidity can affect it. So, before storing comb honey in a certain place, it is necessary to determine the degree of humidity in it.

If its level exceeds 60%, then the honeycomb may become limp, and if it drops below optimal, moths or mold may appear. The temperature is also important, which should be kept in the range from 3 to 10 degrees above zero.

This is interesting: 10 beneficial properties of honey for your health and contraindications for its use

For those who do not know in what conditions to store honey, it is also necessary to understand that you cannot put fruits or vegetables near it, especially bananas, and especially harmful chemicals, since it easily absorbs third-party aromas.

Watch a video on how to properly store centrifugal and comb honey:

Is honey stored in the refrigerator?

Many people are concerned about whether honey is stored in the refrigerator.

In principle, honey can be stored in the refrigerator if you follow a few rules. So, this is quite acceptable if the temperature in the refrigerator is not lower than 5 degrees Celsius (as a rule, this temperature regime is observed on the door). You can also store honey in the refrigerator if it has a dry freezing function, otherwise you will have to check the humidity level in it and, if necessary, remove excess moisture from the walls.

Attention!

Before placing honey in the refrigerator, you should make sure that the container in which it is located is sealed so that no foreign odors get inside.

At what temperature is it best to store honey at home?

The best place to store bee products is the hive. In it, the optimal temperature (5–15 degrees above zero) is achieved thanks to the vital activity of bees. In winter, the optimal temperature is maintained due to the insulation of the bee house, but in summer - due to active ventilation from the wingspan of insects. Based on this, the temperature limits for proper storage of beekeeping products are:

1. Maximum temperature - 45 degrees above zero;
2. The minimum temperature is 5 degrees above zero.

The most optimal temperature for storing honey at home is between 5 and 20 degrees above zero.

If you overheat honey , it will develop a characteristic bitter taste and will darken. But the main disadvantage is that beneficial microelements and vitamins will begin to be destroyed when overheated, resulting in the formation of substances that are very harmful to the human body - toxins.

Due to this reaction of honey to high temperatures, beekeeping experts do not recommend putting it in baking dough or hot tea . To dissolve honey, the temperature of the liquid should not be more than 25 degrees. The best way to consume honey is to take it as a bite into a drink.

Low temperatures also contribute to changes in properties and structure .
When cold, the bee product acquires a solid consistency and a light color. Therefore, it is not very recommended to store this medicinal product in the cold, although lower temperatures do not cause severe losses of medicinal properties.

Is it possible to eat honey that has crystallized in a plastic container?

The separation of honey into thick and liquid is a normal process during long-term storage.
It does not degrade the quality of the product and does not affect the usefulness and taste. Honey crystallization is a natural process of making the product natural. It is a sign of the quality of honey. No chemical reactions occur during crystallization. This process depends on certain conditions: temperature, humidity, storage duration, mechanical stress. The main components of honey are glucose and fructose. It is these substances that underlie the process. Glucose crystallizes, and fructose remains in a liquid state, surrounding the crystals. If honey contains more glucose, the crystallization process will begin earlier. This includes, for example, sunflower honey. If it contains more fructose, then there will be much fewer honey crystals, as, for example, in acacia honey.

The ratio of water and glucose also plays a huge role in this process. That is, if there is more water in honey than glucose, then it will remain liquid longer. Low temperature slows down the crystallization process, since the molecules move much more slowly than at higher temperatures. At high temperatures, large crystals form.

How to properly store honey so that the product does not spoil and retains its beneficial properties for a long time, watch our video:

If honey is stored for a long time, this also affects the crystallization process - over time, the concentration of glucose in honey decreases, and fructose begins to predominate. Accordingly, the honey becomes liquid again. Mechanical action destroys the formed crystals, which slows down and stops the crystallization process. If you add thick honey to liquid honey, the process will go much faster - the existing crystals will join the rest, and their mass will increase.

What type of container should be used to store bee products at home?

Clay dishes

In ancient times, all people stored beekeeping products in containers made of clay. It is best suited for these purposes. This is due to the fact that clay dishes do not allow sunlight to pass through , which contributes to the longest and most effective storage.
The container is filled with a wax layer on top, which reliably preserves the product and helps prevent the entry of foreign odors and moisture. Nowadays, dishes made from clay are not accessible and convenient for everyone. For this reason, honey lovers often ask whether this product can be stored in glass or plastic containers (which are not always safe for health).

Glass container (jar)

Glass jars are more often than other containers used for storing beekeeping products at home. Glass jars are neutral containers that do not release any substances and do not react. The disadvantage of such a container is that it allows the rays of the sun to pass through. It is for this reason that you should choose dark glass containers. Such glass minimally transmits sunlight to the product.

Plastic dishes

Most often, stores and markets sell honey in plastic containers. This dish is ideal for short-term storage and sale. It's no secret that over time, plastic loses its properties under the influence of the environment and sunlight. Due to the influence of these factors, plastic begins to release toxic substances that end up in products. Given these factors, honey should not be stored in plastic containers.

Wooden dishes

At home, you can also store honey in containers made from materials such as wood and metal. The advantage of dishes made of wood is that when a beekeeping product is stored in it, it acquires an extraordinary aroma and all its healing properties are preserved. But it should be noted that there is no need to store food for a long time in containers made from those types of trees that produce essential oils (such as conifers and the like). Tree species such as linden, birch or beech are excellent for this purpose.

Metal utensils

Very often, beekeepers use stainless steel utensils to store large quantities of bee product. These are mostly metal barrels. But such dishes have one huge disadvantage : over time, most metals oxidize. And this can lead to oxides getting into food products, which are dangerous to human life and can lead to poisoning. When choosing metal containers, it is very important to pay attention to the fact that they do not contain alloys of lead, zinc and copper.

Based on the above, we can conclude that in glass containers the shelf life of bee products is much longer than in containers made of metal, wood or plastic. It is for this reason that it is worth giving preference to it for long-term storage.

How long can honey be stored?

There is an opinion that natural honey can be stored indefinitely in the right conditions. But is it? According to industry standards of the Russian Federation: GOST 19792-2001 and GOST R 52451-2005, the shelf life of honey does not exceed 1 year, but this does not mean that the product becomes unhealthy and should not be consumed.

The results of numerous studies have shown that, due to the content of preservative and antimicrobial components, honey retains its taste and medicinal properties for a very long time, up to decades. Some experts are even convinced that with proper storage, the taste and aroma become even better over time, the honey ripens, and fermentation processes continue.

And if we turn to nature, it is stored in wild beehives for several years, and even the age of the bee colony can be determined by the color of this product.

Features and basic rules for storing honey in honeycombs

Honey in combs is a special delicacy that can also be stored in the apartment. This healthy and nutritious product needs special attention due to the fact that it contains beeswax. The conditions for storing honeycomb should be the same as for liquid consistency.

sterilized jars are best suited for storing honeycombs . Cut the honeycomb into pieces of such a size that they can fit freely into the opening of the jar. Cover the top of the jar tightly with a lid. Under such conditions, cells can remain for no more than one year.

In order to increase the shelf life, you should fill the honeycombs with liquid fresh honey, and then seal them with melted wax. After this, seal the jar with a lid. Under such conditions, soda can be stored for more than 10 years.

How long can honey be stored at home?

First you need to decide on the honey consistency :

1. In honeycombs.
2. Thick.
3. Liquid.

Fresh honey has a transparent appearance and liquid consistency. It has a specific spicy pungent aroma. It is this product that contains the largest amount of useful substances of organic origin and vitamins that have a beneficial effect on the human body. Over time, even a long-term product loses its beneficial properties , even if all storage conditions are met correctly. It is recommended to store the beekeeping product at home for no more than 12 months.

After removal, the product begins to thicken and crystallize over several weeks. It is by these qualities that one can determine its organicness and naturalness. Thick honey can also be stored for one year if all conditions are met. At room temperatures, shelf life is reduced to six months.

Do honey and honeycombs have an expiration date?

According to the law, it can be stored for 8 to 12 months. However, this only applies to the product that is pumped out of the honeycomb and poured into industrial packaging.

The specific period is set by the manufacturer. In honeycombs it can retain its properties for years, since they are securely sealed and protect against the penetration of microorganisms.

Even after pumping, natural honey that is properly stored will remain fresh for much longer than a year. It should be borne in mind that after 12 months vitamins and beneficial microelements will begin to disappear, so it is still better to consume it fresh.

Several factors influence shelf life:

• variety;
• chemical composition. A large amount of honeydew - a sweet substance collected by bees - shortens the storage period;
• bees' diet. If a beekeeper constantly feeds them sugar, the result is unhealthy and quickly turns sour;
• maturity. Unscrupulous producers pump out honey before it is fully ripe, which provokes fermentation. This will be indicated by the foam formed on the surface and the sour taste.

IMPORTANT! Properly maintained mature honey will retain its nutrients and freshness for at least 2 years.

There are known facts of using honey as a preservative to preserve perishable foods for a long time. Therefore, theoretically this period is unlimited. But industrial production and the desire of unscrupulous entrepreneurs to make a quick profit do not allow us to talk about a modern product in this way.