The honeycomb that keeps its crunch during baking
to the baking process - making it stable enough for inclusion in
products such as muffins and cakes.
Welsh company Nimbus Foods have manufactured a special honeycomb coating to protect it during cooking and prevent the sweet substance turning sticky.
Honeycomb is a popular addition to many desserts, cakes and confectionery but can prove problematic for manufacturers because of its unstable nature.
Due to its aerated structure, honeycomb is likely to retain water and become less crunchy in a high moisture environment.
To combat this, manufacturers typically coat the ingredient with chocolate which acts as a protective barrier while it is baked in other products.
Nimbus managing director, Ian Ramsay said: "Traditionally honeycomb has been coated in chocolate which helps to lock out moisture and preserve crunch but we can now offer a moisture barrier that keeps the product stable even when it is applied in moist environments, such as cakes or ice cream."
And the ingredient could prove especially profitable for Nimbus as honey is increasingly becoming known as a 'healthy' food stuff and a source of antioxidants.
Scientists continue to shed light on the nutritional value of honey and therefore open it up for use by bakers seeking to target consumers wanting healthier options.
Last year researchers from Purdue University in Indiana reported that honey in combination with calcium supplements increased the quantity of calcium absorbed and could therefore play a role in boosting bone health.
Nimbus also offers honeycomb without coatings or with milk or plain chocolate for use as a topping in confectionery products and make around 50 other core ingredients for the confectionery and baking industries.
Nimbus Foods is a division of the confectionery ingredients manufacturer Glisten which produces chocolates, sugar-based confectionery and cereal bars and had an annual turnover of £27.43m (€40.33m) in 2005.
