CHAPTER VIII

SACCHARINE PRODUCTS

HONEY

Bees are sometimes fed with cane sugar. Often glucose syrup is poured over honeycomb from which the honey has been extracted, and the mixture sold as genuine honey.

Gelatin may be added to increase the weight or to thicken the more voluble adulterants.

The ash of genuine honey is not over 0.3 per cent. Whenever the ash is greater than this it should be tested for calcium sulfate, the presence of a considerable quantity of which is an almost certain proof that starch glucose or invert sugar has been added to the honey. Sulfates may be detected by adding barium chlorid to the aqueous solution of the honey and precipitating barium sulfate.

If the ash is high and considerable chlorids are present, molasses has quite probably been added to the honey. The presence of chlorids may be determined by the addition of silver nitrate which precipitates silver chlorid.

CANE SUGAR

The presence of cane sugar can be detected with certainty only by the use of the polarimeter. Its presence in large quantity gives a high right-handed rotation.

COMMERCIAL GLUCOSE SYRUP

_Allen’s Test._--Make the test for dextrine which is present in commercial glucose, but not in pure honey. Dilute a portion of the honey with an equal volume of water and add methyl alcohol with constant stirring until there is a permanent turbidity. If glucose syrup is present a heavy gummy precipitate will soon form. Genuine honey gives only a slight milkiness.

GELATIN

Dilute a portion of the sample and add a solution of tannic acid. A precipitate indicates the presence of gelatin.

Treat the sample with alcohol, and gelatin, if present, will be left undissolved, and it will give its characteristic odor on ignition.

MAPLE SYRUP

This is sometimes adulterated with glucose, molasses, golden syrup, and with ordinary white sugar. There are no satisfactory simple chemical tests for these substances.

Pure maple syrup should have an ash not lower than 0.35 to 0.40 per cent. A lower ash shows that cane sugar has been added. A higher ash would indicate the presence of molasses or brown sugar stock. These last two adulterants, if present in great abundance, may be detected by taste.

GLUCOSE

This may be detected by the use of the polarimeter. Pure maple syrup gives 53.1 to 60 direct, and--22.2 to--21.9 after hydrolysis. Maple syrup adulterated with glucose gives 80 to 100 direct and 18.9 to 45.6 after hydrolysis (according to Ogdon).