Comprehensive Method Developed for Honey Authenticity Verification in Iran

The method was compiled with the aim of ensuring the source nutrition for bees during honey production.

In addition to meeting the needs of the body, this nutrient has many medicinal and therapeutic properties.

But the main problem of honey is the fraud in the production of this valuable product whose most common fraud is the use of sugar next to the hives.

Fake honey refers to a honey-like product that has been modified with flavors, fillers, dyes, and sugar.

Currently, there is a variety of honey available in the market based on the source of nutrition from different plants such as lavender, ziziphus, sunflower, cedar, canola, and thyme.

The antioxidant and anticancer properties of honey have made its consumption more therapeutic.

However, no method is unfortunately available to verify their authenticity based on the source of nutrition, and even a standard has not been developed for it.

To this end, a certificate of authenticity has been designed for seven types of honey produced in Khorasan Razavi province using diagnostic methods.

For the time being, some chemical methods are used to determine the source of nutrition, geography, quality, and purity of honey.

The methods are based on the number of amino acids and proteins, volatile and aromatic compounds, carbohydrates, minerals, compounds obtained from honey fermentation, organic acids, esters and phenolic compounds, and flavonoids.

Thanks to its suitable climate, Iran has long been a main place for bee breeding.

Currently, the country's beekeeping industry ranks seventh in the world with 206 cooperatives, producing some 81,000 tons of honey per year and creating around 300,000 job opportunities.

4155/g