engleski

Quality evaluation of honey from Osijek market

The aim of this work was to evaluate the quality of commercially available honey in the city of Osijek, Croatia. Thirteen monofloral honey samples of five randomly selected honey brands, were characterised on the basis of their moisture, conductivity, diastase activity, pH, free acidity, as well as the content of hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), reducing sugars and sucrose. Melissopalynogical and sensory analyses of the samples were also performed. Altogether, only five of the samples were found to meet all national requirements for analysed parameters, and two of these were of good sensory quality. Five samples did not comply with national standards for pollen analysis, seven for diastase number, and eight for HMF content. Two samples had HMF value above 300 mg/kg, and one above 500 mg/kg. Six samples from the same producer which was represented by two brands in the survey did not comply to three or more parameters. The noted problem of large portion of of-quality, or adulterated honeys on the local market warrants additional wide ranging studies and a more intense inspection control.

honey; quality evaluation; physicochemical analysis; melissopalynogical analysis; sensory analysis

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