If you want to be sure of the quality of your honey and that it will remain fresh, avoiding costly losses through spoilage you should consider having your products tested. The moisture content of honey is a quality indicator that determines the ability of honey to remain fresh and avoid spoilage through yeast fermentation. Raw honey will normally have a moisture content of approximately 18%, although it is internationally recognised that good quality honey should generally contain less than 20% water.

EU Council Directive 2001/110/EC of 20 December 2001 relating to honey lists moisture content as one of the key composition criteria to be determined for honey intended for human consumption. Three values are quoted in this directive, namely not more than 20% in general, not more than 23% for heather and baker’s honey and not more than 25% for baker’s honey from heather.

Using established refractrometry techniques, the refractive index of honey is measured and compared to a standard reference table to calculate the water content.