Value Added Food Products based on Honey

Honey is a sweet, viscous secretion by the bees after the assimilation of pollen and nectar. Honey gets its sweetness from the monosaccharides fructose and glucose and has relative sweetness similar to sucrose (table sugar). Honey has attractive physical and chemical properties and provide distinct aroma and flavor when used as sweetener in different food products. One hundred grams of honey provides 304 Kcal of energy making them a suitable alternative as natural sweetener. The honey and honey based product is Rs. 2.88 billion market in India with a projected annual growth of 10.2% for next 5 years. According to the National Bee Board, the average honey production in India is about 10 million metric tonnes and country exports honey worth USD 100 million. Honey based industries have been given importance under cottage industries, MSME and Farmers Produce Organization (FPO) schemes for empowering rural economy.

In this context, CSIR-IHBT has developed processes for preparing honey based food products for rural development such as

• Honey chocolate syrup
• Honey powder
• Honey Rosgulla & GulabJamun
• Honey Tea concentrate
• Honey fruits Preserve
• Honey Jelly  (lemon & Chocolate)
• Honey fruit Barfi
• Honey Khamboocha

1. No added sugar
2. High calorie foods
3. Long shelf life more than four months
4. Free from chemical preservatives
5. Cost-effective
6. Ideal for rural enterprises