Alternatives to official analytical methods used for the water determination in honey

A modified Karl Fischer (KF) titration method (measurements at 50°C instead of room temperature) for the precise determination of the water content in honey has been developed together with the adjustment of a drying method using an infrared (IR) technique. The results obtained by this IR method applying a temperature between 98–100°C were found to be very similar to those obtained by the KF technique. In the second part of the study, the water concentration was determined in 39 authentic honey samples from various geographical and botanical origins using four different techniques: KF titration, refractive index measurements, official oven-drying method and a special oven method. Significant differences could be observed (maximum differences were in the range 0.9–5.1% absolute). The results obtained by KF titration were found to have the lowest standard deviations. With the exception of a few honey varieties, this method led to the highest values.