Análisis integral de la miel de abeja: desde la composición química hasta la caracterización sensorial J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13996987ISSN: 3073-1283 REVIEW ARTICLE Comprehensive analysis of bee honey:from chemical composition to sensory characterization Daliannis Rodríguez rcdaly92@gmail.com1 Universidad UTE, campus Manabí, Montecristi, Ecuador.2 Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias y Recursos Naturales, Universidad Técnica de Cotopaxi, Latacunga, Ecuador.Received: 4 March 2024 / Accepted: 16 June 2024 / Published online: 30 July 2024© The Author(s) 2024 Daliannis Rodríguez 1 · Edwin R. Cevallos 2 Abstract Bee honey is a natural product with a complex chemical composition that varies according to its botanical and geographical origin. This article provides a comprehen-sive analysis of honey, addressing its chemical composition, which includes sugars, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and bio-active compounds, as well as its impact on organoleptic prop-erties. Analytical techniques used to determine the chemical composition, such as chromatography and spectroscopy, are examined, highlighting their importance for the authenticity and quality of honey. Additionally, sensory evaluation meth-ods are explored, which allow for the characterization of the favor, aroma, and color of honey, and how these attributes are infuenced by factors such as foral origin and process -ing conditions. Finally, the relevance of a multidimensional approach to honey evaluation is discussed, integrating both chemical composition and sensory characteristics, thereby contributing to a better understanding of its quality and po-tential as a functional product in food and health. Keywords bee honey, chemical composition, organoleptic properties, sensory analysis, honey authenticity. Resumen La miel de abeja es un producto natural con una compleja composición química que varía según su ori- gen botánico y geográfco. Este artículo ofrece un análisis integral de la miel, abordando su composición química, que incluye azúcares, proteínas, vitaminas, minerales, y com-puestos bioactivos, así como su impacto en las propiedades organolépticas. Se examinan las técnicas analíticas utilizadas para determinar la composición química, como la cromato-grafía y la espectroscopia, destacando su importancia para la autenticidad y calidad de la miel. Además, se exploran los métodos de evaluación sensorial, que permiten caracterizar el sabor, aroma y color de la miel, y cómo estos atributos son infuenciados por factores como el origen foral y las condiciones de procesamiento. Finalmente, se discute la rel-evancia de un enfoque multidimensional para la evaluación de la miel, que integre tanto la composición química como las características sensoriales, contribuyendo así a un mejor entendimiento de su calidad y su potencial como producto funcional en la alimentación y la salud. Palabras clave miel de abeja, composición química, propiedades organolépticas, análisis sensorial, autenticidad de la miel. How to cite Rodríguez, D., & Cevallos, E.R. (2024). Comprehensive analysis of bee honey: from chemical composition to sensory characterization. Journal of Food Science and Gastronomy , 2 (2), 32-40. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13996987
J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40 33 Introduction There are approximately 20,000 species of bees world -wide, which vary in size, shape, and behavior but all share the habit of visiting fowers to collect food (Orr et al., 2022). The most well-known and widely distributed species is Apis mellifera , whose use in crop pollination and the production of honey, wax, and pollen dates back centuries (Papa et al., 2022). The primary natural product of Apis mellifera bees is hon-ey, which has stimulating, nutritional, and therapeutic prop-erties, making it a highly sought-after product in the inter- national market (Świąder & Marczewska, 2021). Currently, the work of the International Honey Commission focuses on the composition criteria of uniforal honey, which includes moisture content, sugars, water-insoluble solids, minerals, acidity, diastase activity, and hydroxymethylfurfural content (Zhang et al., 2023). These documents also propose new international standards and other quality factors that should be considered when certifying the quality of honey specifc to its geobotanical origin. These include the determination of electrical conduc- tivity, specifc monosaccharide content, invertase activity, proline content, and specifc rotation angle. However, sen -sory property evaluation is primarily referenced in long-term studies (Świąder et al., 2021).Honey can be foral in origin when derived from fower nectar or from honeydew, which comes from the excretions of plants or insects. Floral honeys can be monoforal (derived from a single fower species) or polyforal (derived from multiple fower species). Honey is considered specifc or uniforal if the nectar of a single foral species predominates, thus attributing the therapeutic properties of the plant from which the nectar originates (Becerril-Sánchez et al., 2021). The commercialization of uniforal honey has increased sig - nifcantly due to rising international demand, benefting ex -porting countries by granting them greater competitiveness in the global market (Zhang et al., 2023). The objective of this review article was to describe the chemical composition of bee honey and its infuence on physicochemical, nutritional, medicinal, and sensory prop- erties, considering the efects of key components and factors such as botanical origin and processing on its quality, accep-tance, and market consumption potential. Generalities of bee honey Honey is a food product obtained from bees Apis mellif-era , derived from the nectar of fowers or secretions from living parts of plants. Bees collect, transform, and combine this nectar with their substances, storing it and allowing it to mature in the hive’s combs.Bee honey originates from nectar secreted by melliferous plants as a sweet, aqueous solution. When bees collect nectar from fowers, they transform it into a highly concentrated sugar solution, enriched with traces of vitamins, minerals, and other bioactive components.Numerous varieties of bee honey can be distinguished ac- cording to various traits, including foral origin, collection regions, and production methods. Honey can be classifed as foral (when derived from fower nectar) or animal origin (when derived from insect secretions). Floral honeys can be monoforal (from a single fower species) or polyforal (from multiple fower species). There is no strict uniforal honey, as the presence of small amounts of nectar from other mel- liferous plants does not signifcantly afect the aroma, color, and favor of the honey predominantly derived from a single foral species (Vîjan et al., 2023).Polyforal honey is named according to the collection loca -tion, such as meadow honey, steppe honey, forest honey, or-chard honey, mountain honey, and taiga honey, among others (Fernández, 2023). However, many kind of honey marketed as polyforal do not correspond to this classifcation but are mixtures of diferent uniforal kinds of honey.Honey has an average energy value of 13.84 kJ/kg (3.307 kcal/kg). It is hygroscopic, easily absorbing moisture from the air, making it a dehydrating agent in the tobacco industry and baking. The glucose in honey tends to crystallize at room temperature, leaving a layer of dissolved fructose. For com- mercialization, honey is heated to approximately 66 °C to dissolve the crystals and then packaged in airtight containers to prevent crystallization (Amariei et al., 2020). Chemical composition of bee honey Bee honey primarily consists of various sugars, with fruc-tose and glucose being the most abundant. It also contains proteins, amino acids, enzymes, organic acids, minerals, pol-len, and other substances. Additionally, it may contain traces of sucrose, turanose, maltose, isomaltose, and certain oligo-saccharides, as well as vestiges of fungi, yeasts, and other solid particles resulting from the honey production process.However, presenting a summary of the chemical composi-tion of honey as a generic value is risky due to the multiple intrinsic and extrinsic factors that infuence the composition of this complex product (Al-Kafaween et al., 2023). The chemical composition of bee honey is extremely variable, so any attempt to describe its chemical properties should be done in terms of ranges. The sugar content should not be limited to just the major sugars; it should also include other minor monosaccharides, minerals, protein-derived el- ements, and pigments, among others (Shapla et al., 2018).
J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40 34 Quality indicators The quality of bee honey is infuenced by various factors. These include aspects of bee activity, such as the sugar ratio, diastatic activity, and acidity. Environmental factors, such as the predominant fowering, the mineral content of the soil, and the composition of the nectar, are also relevant. Addi-tionally, handling practices during the collection and preser-vation process, such as moisture content and hydroxymeth- ylfurfural content, are determinants of the fnal product quality (Shapla et al., 2018).The wide range of intrinsic and extrinsic factors afecting honey properties has led to hundreds of diferent types of uniforal honeys, each with unique chemical composition characteristics showing great variability. Moisture content The moisture content of honey depends on various factors, one of the most important being the time honey remains in the comb, which should be approximately three months. Ad- ditionally, moisture can be afected by technological failures, lack of precautions during the extraction process, and the use of inadequate packaging (Singh & Singh, 2018).Moisture is the primary quality indicator of honey, as fer -mentation requires the presence of water. Honey extracted from partially capped combs has a higher moisture content than honey from flled and capped combs, as honey can absorb and release moisture depending on environmental conditions. Therefore, it is recommended to avoid honey extraction in humid climates until at least two-thirds of the combs are capped (Singh & Singh, 2018). Sugar content From a quantitative perspective, sugars constitute the ma- jor component of honey, accounting for approximately 80% of its total composition. This high content signifcantly con -tributes to the physical and energetic properties of honey (Al-Kafaween et al., 2023). The predominant sugars in honey are the monosaccharides fructose and glucose, which are found in proportions rang- ing from 33 to 42% and from 27 to 36%, respectively. The presence of these monosaccharides is due to the action of the enzyme invertase (α-glucosidase) on sucrose derived from fower nectar. For honey to be considered of good quality, the content of reducing sugars should not be less than 65% (Salvador et al., 2019). The most abundant disaccharide in honey is sucrose, the predominant sugar in fower nectar. Additionally, other di -saccharides such as trehalose, turanose, maltose, isomaltose, and gentibiose may be found. Among the oligosaccharides, trisaccharides such as erlose, maltotriose, and isomaltotriose are prominent (Al-Kafaween et al., 2023). There are other hydrocarbon structures in honey, grouped under the term “dextrins,” which are generally less complex than true dextrins from starch. Examples include rafnose and melecitose (Al-Kafaween et al., 2023). Mineral content Honey contains small amounts of minerals such as calci-um, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, po-tassium, sodium, and silicon. These minerals come from the soil where the plants, from which honey is obtained, grow; therefore, honey from the same foral species but from difer - ent soils may present variations in mineral content (Kędzier - ska-Matysek et al., 2018).Dark honey tends to be richer in mineral substances (Tlak et al., 2024). Generally, potassium is the predominant min -eral, accounting for approximately one-quarter of the total minerals.Research has shown a relationship between the color of honey and its mineral content, indicating that the darker the honey, the higher the percentage of mineral salts and, conse-quently, its nutritional value. Acidity and pH The concentration of organic acids in honey is generally low, around 0.57%. Several acids have been identifed, in -cluding gluconic, citric, malic, succinic, formic, acetic, bu-tyric, lactic, oxalic, and tartaric acids. Among these, gluconic acid is the most abundant, resulting from the action of glu-cose oxidase on glucose, making it the predominant acid in honey (Tischer et al., 2019). Lactic acidity, considered as the reserve acidity when hon-ey begins to alkalinize, always has a value lower than free acidity. The pH of honey ranges between 3 and 4, contrib - uting to its stability against various microorganisms (Abdi et al., 2024). Diastase activity Diastase (α-amylase) is the enzyme responsible for the hydrolysis of starch into dextrins and simpler sugars. The diastase index, along with the content of hydroxymethylfur- fural (HMF), are indicators that provide a measure of the freshness of newly harvested honey (Sajtos et al., 2024).Invertase activity (α-glucosidase) is also sensitive to over -heating and prolonged storage, making it an indicator of pro-cessing quality and honey freshness. A minimum invertase value of over 10 has been proposed, although this standard is less strict for honey with low enzymatic activity, where an invertase index greater than 4 is required. However, interpreting results in terms of freshness based on invertase activity is complicated, as the initial value is
J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40 35 unknown, preventing the establishment of a reference point to assess possible deterioration due to overheating or aging of the honey. This same problem exists for diastase. Hydroxymethylfurfural content The content of 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural (HMF) is a parameter that provides information about the freshness of honey. Freshly harvested honey contains practically minimal amounts of HMF, which begins to form from the degradation of fructose under acidic conditions and at elevated tempera- tures. The rate of HMF formation is directly related to the moisture percentage, the initial HMF content in freshly har - vested honey, and the medium acidity (Sajtos et al., 2024). Other indicators of bee honey composition There are useful criteria for determining the quality of honey that however are not included in international legisla- tion. Invertase activity, proline content, and specifc rotation of honey are three of these criteria (Zhang et al., 2023). Ad -ditionally, certain indices of chemical composition, besides serving as quality criteria, are useful tools for diferentiating between various types of honey.Like other components of honey, nitrogen exhibits vari- able concentrations infuenced by multiple factors. It is estimated that approximately 40 to 80% of the nitrogen in most honey is protein nitrogen. Small amounts of proteins or other colloidal substances are sufcient to accentuate the tendency of honey to foam or retain air bubbles, which may be interpreted as a sign of fermentation, although it is not necessarily so (Martínez et al., 2024). The determination of nitrogen, among other components, has been used to assess adulteration in honey (Fakhlaei et al., 2020). Although proteins are a minor component in honey, they are used as an internal standard in the evaluation of adul-teration through the carbon isotope stability index. Since 1978, average values of 169 mg/100 g of honey have been published, with a confdence interval between 58 and 786 mg/100 g (Adams et al., 2009). This variability suggests that the variation is due not only to foral origin but also to possi -ble errors introduced by the analytical methods used.The National Honey Board of the U.S. reports that honey has an average protein content of 168.6 mg/100 g, varying from 57.7 to 567 mg/100 g (S = 70.9) (Zavala et al., 2024). This range, although lower than that reported by White and Rudyl, is still wide for comparisons between honeys of dif-ferent botanical origins. Additionally, this organization indi- cates that the protein content in honey is 0.266%, equivalent to 266 mg/100 g, while nitrogen is found at 43 mg/100 g and amino acids range from 50 to 100 mg/100 g, leading to inconsistencies with previous data (Erban et al., 2019). The proteins in honey generally come from bees, although there are also contributions from pollen and nectar from plants. Most publications on honey proteins focus on the en -zymes that bees incorporate into honey. The main enzymes found are invertase (α-glucosidase), α-amylase (diastase), and catalase (Erban et al., 2019).Honey contains, although in small quantities, around 18 free amino acids, which represent between 0.05% and 0.1%, among which histidine, proline, lysine, serine, phenylala- nine, asparagine, and glutamine stand out (Martínez et al., 2024). Proline is the most abundant amino acid, representing between 39.6% and 46.9% of the total in honey from Korea, or levels between 133 and 1,245 mg/kg in honey from Brazil (Chang et al., 2022). The amount of proline has been used as an indicator of adulteration, as there is a negative correlation between proline and the typical sugars in honey, and it has been suggested that genuine honey should contain a mini- mum of 180 mg/kg of proline.Although honey is not a signifcant food in terms of pro -tein contribution, knowing the total protein and nitrogen content is useful, as the low protein content is one of the rea-sons why honey has low microbiological contamination and contributes to its antimicrobial power. This is also explained by the high C ratio, which does not meet the needs of most microorganisms. The presence of certain proteins also in- fuences the non-Newtonian (thixotropic) behavior of some honey and is responsible for foaming and the retention of air bubbles, undesirable characteristics, as consumers associate them with fermentation.Some authors have linked variations in honey color with the presence of certain proteins, and it has been shown that these also participate in variations in honey’s thermal prop-erties, as the thermal capacity decreases with increasing total solids, including proteins (Singh & Singh, 2018).On the other hand, the honey vitamin content is low and does not represent a signifcant nutritional contribution. During storage, these decrease due to oxidation and ther- mal degradation. The vitamins include thiamine, ribofavin, ascorbic acid, pantothenic acid, and nicotinic acid.Lipids in honey are scarce and likely come from the wax generated during extraction. Plant pigments, such as carot -enoids, xanthophylls, and anthocyanins, are found in small amounts and have been little studied. On the other hand, fa -vonoids, which are also responsible for honey color, have been studied more for their therapeutic properties than their relationship with botanical origin (Becerril-Sánchez et al., 2021). Furthermore, variations in honey color are considered to be due to the presence of pigments (carotenoids, chloro - phylls, and xanthophylls) that diferentiate between light and dark honey. Likewise, very old or dark combs enhance the natural color of honey, as pigments retained in the cells dis-solve into it.
J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40 36 Physical properties of honeyColor Color is one of the most relevant physical parameters for defning the quality of honey and is an important factor to consider in commercial presentation, as it infuences con - sumer preferences (Haidamus et al., 2019). The nature of color as an indicator of the botanical and geographical origin of honey from Apis mellifera is a complex and debated topic.Although these aspects have generally been studied inde- pendently, the trend in the scientifc community is to con -sider minerals as the main contributors to honey coloration. However, the characteristic color of honey is a multifactorial phenomenon that must be approached comprehensively. The color of honeys varies according to the predominant foral species during a given period, as well as by external factors such as aging, beekeeper management, and storage condi- tions (Haidamus et al., 2019). To classify color, the visual colorimetric comparator “Pfund” is used, which classifes honey from water white to dark amber, is the internationally recognized standard for the buying and selling of honey. According to this method, honey is considered to have a certain color when at least 5% of the analyzed containers contain honey of diferent colors, provided that no sample has a reading below the immediate following color (Bodor et al., 2021).Although the Pfund method allows for visual compari -son, it includes honey with a wide range of values within the same category. Therefore, it would be benefcial to use spectrophotometric evaluations for a more precise charac- terization of the chromatic properties of honey. Since 1925, relative characteristics of the color of various types of honey have been established (Bodor et al., 2021). Density and viscosity Density is a physical property of honey that is closely re-lated to its moisture content and determines its consistency or viscosity. Honey generally has a relatively high density, and honey with low density tends to have a high moisture content, making them less viscous and more prone to fer-mentation. Currently, it is established that the minimum acceptable relative density for honey should be 1.400 kg/L (Ciursa et al., 2021).Viscosity is one of the most important physical properties of honey, as it signifcantly infuences its processing and preservation. Research on the rheological behavior of honey has been fundamental in achieving a longer shelf life, as well as facilitating handling, packaging, and processing. General - ly, honeys behave as Newtonian fuids. The viscosity value largely depends on the concentration of sugars at a specifc temperature. The ratio of fructose to glucose also infuences viscosity; a fructose solution is less viscous than a glucose solution, which explains why tupelo honey, which have a high fructose content, are less viscous (Ciursa et al., 2021). Additionally, it has been suggested that the presence of dextrins can increase the viscosity of honey more than the sugar ratio, which may lead to a rheological behavior known as dilatancy. Refractive index The refractive index provides a quick, accurate, and sim-ple measure from which the water content in honey can be inferred. This indicator is useful precisely because it is not related to the botanical origin of the honey. Honey from bees has a refractive index corresponding to its high sugar con- centration, ranging from 1.47 to 1.50 at a temperature of 20 °C (Rababah et al., 2024). Specifc rotation angle A common characteristic of all sugary solutions is their ability to rotate the plane of polarized light, either to the right or to the left, depending on the type of sugar and its concen-tration. In honey, the value of the rotation angle is the sum of the rotatory power of the present sugars. Most nectar honey is levorotatory, while honeydew honey tends to be dextroro- tatory (Zhang et al., 2023). Electrical conductivity Electrical conductivity is an indirect measure of the min -eral salt content in honey and has replaced the determination of ash in routine analysis, as it is directly proportional to the content of ash and metals, especially transition metal salts (Sancho et al., 1991). This measurement is widely used to identify uniforal honey, so the inclusion of electrical con -ductivity among international standards is urgently recom- mended (Addi & Bareke, 2021).It is suggested that foral honeys and their mixtures should have electrical conductivity values below 0.8 mS/cm, while honeydew and chestnut honey should present higher values. However, there are exceptions, such as honey from Arbutus, Eucalyptus, and Tilia, which show high variability in their electrical conductivity (Piana et al., 2004). Hygroscopicity and water activity Hygroscopicity is the ability of certain foods and chemical products, such as honey, to absorb and retain moisture. This phenomenon has been studied in various sugars, where it has been found that fructose, the predominant sugar in honey, exhibits higher hygroscopicity compared to other common
J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40 37 sugars (Erejuwa et al., 2012). However, under certain condi -tions, honey can show a level of hygroscopicity greater than that of fructose, due to the infuence of other components present in honey that enhance its ability to retain moisture (Al-Kafaween et al., 2023). The water activity (aw) in honey is one of the most stable indicators and has been observed to vary between 0.5 and 0.6 (Chen, 2019). Sensory evaluation In the last 25 years, it has been shown that while instru -mental methods are faster and more precise for determining food quality, they do not always manage to measure all as- pects of food, only specifc characteristics. Therefore, sen -sory evaluation conducted by consumers is considered the most direct way to assess food quality, allowing the determi- nation of its organoleptic properties (Żak et al., 2023).Sensory evaluation tests are classifed into analytical, which are the most suitable for assessing product quality (Żak et al., 2023), and afective, which focus on consumer acceptance and preference. Among analytical tests, descrip-tive tests are the most common. The initial steps in the sensory analysis of uniforal honeys in Belgium, primarily focusing on aroma profles, have been used as a tool to identify their botanical origin in future stud- ies (Zhang et al., 2023). Despite the numerous references on sensory evaluation tests, especially of the descriptive type, the application of quantitative descriptive analysis to difer -entiate honey has been scarcely explored. Characterization of uniforal honey The foral origin of honeys is an essential characteristic in assessing their quality. Uniforal honey is distinguished by aromas that primarily come from the nectar of the fowers from which they are obtained, indicating the presence of vol- atile compounds that can act as specifc markers. However, the identifcation of the foral origin of honeys is generally performed using chemical, and physical indicators, pollen patterns, and organoleptic properties (Jandrić et al., 2015). In Italy, a country notable for the production and mar- keting of uniforal honeys, the Ministry of Agricultural and Forestry Policies has established a characterization scheme that requires the analysis of chemical and physical parame- ters, as well as sensory and palynological analysis (Conti et al., 2007). To determine if a honey is indeed uniforal, it is necessary to compare these characteristics with established standards.Chemical and physical analyses provide objective mea- surements but do not always guarantee adequate diferen -tiation. Sensory and palynological analyses provide more specifc data that are complemented by utilizing sufcient taxonomic variables and appropriate statistical methods (Ro - dríguez et al., 2015). Analytical techniques for determining chemical and physical indicators of honey are internationally validated and considered ofcial methods of analysis (Tsag - karis et al., 2021). The relationships between the amounts of glucose and fructose are infuenced by foral nectar, allowing for the characterization of honey based on their geographical and/or botanical origin (Mongi, 2024).Free amino acids are a characteristic component of unifo - ral honey, with an average content of approximately 980 mg/ kg, enabling regional and botanical discrimination of honeys (Yang et al., 2024). The minerals present in honey primarily come from the raw materials collected by bees and vary ac- cording to the botanical and geographical origin (Bogdanov et al., 2007). Research in Canada has analyzed the mineral fraction in honey using neutron activation techniques and multivariate statistical methods to diferentiate them based on their geographical origin (Burton et al., 2023). The electrical conductivity of honey is related to the pres-ence of organic and inorganic acids, as well as the dissoci-ation of mineral salts into ions. Recent results indicate that electrical conductivity is a useful parameter for classifying honey based on its botanical origin (Majewska et al., 2019).Multivariate statistics have been widely used to classify honey. Principal component analysis has been applied to au - thenticate honeys (Torres et al., 2022), while other studies have classifed nectar and honeydew honey samples based on physical and chemical indicators (Fernández-Estellé et al., 2023). In Spain, statistical techniques have been applied to classify honeys from diferent geographical origins using quality control data (Ghidotti et al., 2021).To identify and diferentiate uniforal honey, sensory anal -ysis has been used, where the appropriate selection of tasters and statistical methods contributes to obtaining more objec- tive results (Piana et al., 2004). Commercial honeys were studied through chemical, physical indicators, and sensory evaluations (Anupama et al., 2003).Melissopalynological analysis, which studies the pollen grains present in honey, is fundamental for certifying unifo -ral origin. This analysis involves counting the absolute num-ber of pollen grains per unit volume, which varies according to the foraging behavior of bees and foral morphology (Sel - varaju et al., 2019). Uniforal honey must contain more than 45% pollen grains from a single species (Calaça et al., 2018). Currently, attention is being paid to the detection and iden- tifcation of micro-components in honey, which are often re - sponsible for diferences in their characteristics depending on their botanical origin. These compounds are referred to as
J. Food Sci. Gastron . (July - December 2024) 2 (2): 32-40 38 chemical markers. Gas chromatography is primarily used to identify volatile compounds, while high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is employed to quantify phenolic and favonoid compounds, which are important chemical markers in uniforal honeys (Becerril-Sánchez et al., 2021; Ouchemoukh et al., 2017). Conclusions The chemical composition of honey is highly complex and varies signifcantly depending on factors such as bee species, available fora, environmental conditions, and processing methods. Carbohydrates, predominantly glucose and fruc-tose, constitute the majority of its composition, while phe- nolic compounds and favonoids give honey notable antiox -idant and antimicrobial properties. These properties, in turn, infuence the sensory profle of honey, afecting attributes like color, aroma, and favor, which are crucial for consum -er preference. Sensory characterization remains an evolving area seeking standardization and improvement, especially in the evaluation of honey from specifc botanical origins. The integration of advanced analytical chemistry methods and sensory analysis techniques is projected as essential for quality and authenticity standardization of honey in the food industry. References Abdi, G.G., Tola, Y.B., & Kuyu, C.G. (2024). Assessment of Physicochemical and Microbiological Characteristics of Honey in Southwest Ethiopia: Detection of Adulter -ation through Analytical Simulation. Journal of Food Protection , 87 (1), 100194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfp.2023.100194Addi, A., & Bareke, T. (2021). Botanical origin and charac - terization of monoforal honeys in Southwestern forest of Ethiopia. Food Science and Nutrition , 9 (9), 4998-5005. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsn3.2453Al-Kafaween, M.A., Alwahsh, M., Mohd, A.B., & Abuleb - dah. D.H. (2023). Physicochemical Characteristics and Bioactive Compounds of Diferent Types of Honey and Their Biological and Therapeutic Properties: A Com -prehensive Review. Antibiotics (Basel) , 12 (2), 337. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12020337Amariei, S., Norocel, L., & Agripina, L. (2020). An inno -vative method for preventing honey crystallization. In-novative Food Science & Emerging Technologies , 66 , 102481. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ifset.2020.102481 Anupama, D., Bhat, K.K., & Sapna, V.K. (2003). Sensory and physico-chemical properties of commercial sam-ples of honey. Food Research International , 36 (2), 183-191 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0963-9969(02)00135-7 Becerril-Sánchez, A.L., Quintero-Salazar, B., Dublán- García, O., & Escalona-Buendía. H.B. (2021). Pheno -lic Compounds in Honey and Their Relationship with Antioxidant Activity, Botanical Origin, and Color. Anti-oxidants (Basel) , 10 (11), 1700. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox10111700Bodor, Z., Benedek, C., Urbin, Á., Szabó, D., & Sipos, L. (2021). Colour of honey: can we trust the Pfund scale? – An alternative graphical tool covering the whole visible spectra. LWT , 149 , 111859. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2021.111859Bogdanov, S., Haldimann, M., Luginbühl, W., & Gallmann, P. (2007). Minerals in honey: environmental, geograph -ical and botanical aspects. Journal of Apicultural Re-search , 46 (4), 269-275. https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2007.11101407Burton, I.W., Kompany-Zareh, M., Haverstock, S., Haché, J., Martinez-Farina, C.F., Wentzell, P.D., & Berrué, F. (2023). Analysis and discrimination of Canadian honey using quantitative nmr and multivariate statistical meth-ods. Molecules , 28 (4), 1656. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28041656Calaça, P., Schlindwein, C., & Bastos, E.M.A.F. (2018). Discriminating uniforal honey from a dioecious mass fowering tree of Brazilian seasonally dry tropical forest through pollen spectra: consequences of honeybee pref - erence for staminate fowers. Apidologie , 49 , 705-720. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-018-0597-8Chang, H., Ding, G., Jia, G., Feng, M., & Huang, J. (2022). Hemolymph Metabolism Analysis of Honey Bee (Apis mellifera L.) Response to Diferent Bee Pollens. Insects , 14(1), 37. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects14010037Chen, C. (2019). Relationship between Water Activity and Moisture Content in Floral Honey. Foods , 8 (1), 30. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods8010030Christopher, J.A., Manley-Harris, M., & Molan, P.C. (2009). The origin of methylglyoxal in New Zealand manuka (Leptospermum scoparium) honey. Carbohydrate Re-search , 344(8), 1050-1053. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carres.2009.03.020Ciursa, P., & Oroian, M. (2021). Rheological behavior of honey adulterated with agave, maple, corn, rice and inverted sugar syrups. Scientifc Reports , 11 (1), 23408. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-02951-3
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