"Perishables"

[mikesnr]

I read somewhere that the edible substance least likely to deteriorate over time is pure honey; and that its' 'shelf-life' is almost unlimited. Is this true, and why?

There is probably another answer (or 6!); I'll be very interested to hear from you.

[Clanad]

Our friends at Wikipedia say "...Honey does not spoil. Because of its high sugar concentration, it kills bacteria by osmotically lysing them. Natural airborne yeasts can not become active in it because the moisture content is too low. Natural, raw, honey varies from 14% to 18% moisture content. As long as the moisture content remains under 18%, virtually no organism can successfully multiply to significant amounts in honey." By the way osmotically lysing is defined as the rupturing of cellular walls because of absorption of fluids by osmoses... fatal to bacteria but not to mamallian cells and caused by the high sugar content of the honey.
The honey will, over time in dry conditions, crystalize into granules, which can be reversed by heating. Apparently, edible honey has been found in some of the burial chambers of Egyptian pyramids.

[kev100]

Honey is the only foodstuff that lasts for ever, it doesn't ever go off. Why I haven't a clue, but apparently if you find a jar of it that was bottled a thousand years ago it is still perfectly safe to eat

[gazzawazza]

Damn! I chucked some out recently coz it looked funny!

[brachiopod]

A bag of sugar (assuming it is kept dry) will keep 'forever' for the same reasons as above.