Honey is one of the oldest food products. Cave paintings from the stone age give witness of how the product of wild bees has been used as the first sweetener, containing lots of positive ingredients for a general healing effect.
Nowadays honey is part of the food industry with its profit orientated mechanisms. Price is an issue, and the cold hurled product needs careful attention and efforts for maximum quality.
The origin of a product in general is essential for tracing the manufacturing steps. Latest since BIO became a quality issue in food industry, foodstuff testing laboratories are looking for hints to find out the nectar and honeydew sources which are the basis of honey. Pollen residuals within the honey give a clear indication about the region of origin. In Europe, honey from Central America is widespread, but not always clearly indicated. Eastern Europe and China are playing an important role as honey producers.
Once the pollen is detected and allocated to a defined plant species, it is easy to debunk imposters. Pollen from tropic plants found in a honey sample declared as a Central European product – a microscope will be the necessary tool to find out. Brightfield illumination is the required method, Phase contrast is not optimal as the pollen grains clearly have a significant 3D dimension, too thick for applying this contrast method. Simple POL contrast may help to find the isolated pollen grains within the honey sample.
Some examples from the Middle European flora:
One more example that a standard microscope takes importance in our daily life. Take a sample from the breakfast table and try to find some pollen grains.
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