Question 16 - Reading Practice Test for the TOEFL Test

Honey’s Eternal Shelf-Life

Honey is one of nature’s stickiest, sweetest creations. It’s a thick and golden substance produced by honey bees. While commonly used in foods and beverages as a sweetening agent, honey is also infamous for its preservational qualities. Studies have shown that when kept away from moisture or humidity, honey doesn’t expire or grow mold. But, how does this happen?

It starts with the bees themselves—and their magical stomachs. Honey bees don’t produce honey on their own. They must first collect nectar, a sugary liquid, from flowers and plants. Nectar powers a bee’s muscles and digestion, so it’s important for their nourishment. Once fed, the bees will store any extra nectar in their stomachs. This will eventually become honey, which bees store into hexagonal structures in their hive.

This very process is the reason that honey lives forever. An enzyme in the bees stomach called glucose oxidase mixes the sugary water with another chemical compound: hydrogen peroxide. This stops the growth of bacteria. The high sugar content of the honey paired with its bacteria resistance makes it the perfect mix for long-term storage. But this amazing discovery isn’t new: It is said that some ancient civilizations stored various foods and objects in honey to preserve them for a longer shelf-life. Honey even dates back to prehistoric times, making it one of nature’s oldest and most interesting foods.