How to Spot Adulterated Honey in 5 Simple Tests

Before we get to the tests, it's important to understand what you're testing for. The most common forms of honey adulteration involve: high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), rice syrup, invert sugar syrup, and cane sugar solution. Each adulterant has slightly different physical and chemical properties, which is why a combination of tests gives a more reliable result than any single test.

Test 1 — The Water Test: Add a teaspoon of honey to a glass of water. Pure honey sinks to the bottom and forms a lump. Adulterated honey dissolves more quickly or disperses through the water. This test gives a rough indication but is not definitive.

Test 2 — The Flame Test: Dip a matchstick in honey and try to ignite it. Pure honey, which has low moisture content (under 20%), will allow the matchstick to burn. Adulterated honey, which typically has higher moisture content, will prevent ignition. Again, not definitive on its own.

Test 3 — The Thumb Test: Place a small drop on your thumb. Pure honey should stay in place and not spread. Impure honey tends to spread around. This tests viscosity — a rough proxy for purity.

Test 4 — The Crystallisation Test: Real honey crystallises at room temperature over time. If your honey has been sitting for months and never crystallised, it is likely adulterated with syrups that resist crystallisation. (Note: some genuine honeys — particularly acacia honey — crystallise very slowly, so this test should be contextualised.)

Test 5 — The NMR Test: This is the gold standard — and it's not something you can do at home. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy can detect adulteration at the molecular level with near-perfect accuracy. DVISSA tests every batch using NMR and publishes the results. If a honey brand cannot provide NMR test certificates, treat that as a significant red flag.