Diastase

Definition

Diastase breaks down starch and is one of several enzymes bees introduce during ripening. It degrades with heat and with long storage, so a diastase number is used alongside HMF to assess processing history. Standards generally require a diastase number of at least 8, with allowances for honeys naturally low in enzymes — citrus honeys among them.

Guide records that discuss this

• How honey quality is assessedThere are four separate questions hiding inside is this good honey — is it authentic, is it what it says, is it well made, and do I like it. They have different answers and different tests.
• The enzymes in honeyHoney is the only common food that arrives carrying the enzymes of the animal that made it. Two of them made the honey, one defends it, and all of them are read in a laboratory as a record of how it has been treated.
• How honey is testedThe laboratory panel behind every honey specification, method by method: what each test measures, what it costs, and what a clean result does not rule out.