The demand of honey with defined quality has increased around the world; therefore, an adequate description of the traceability and authenticity of honeys is necessary. The pollen and physicochemical characteristics of 58 honey samples collected from five different environmental units (EUs) of the Jujuy province (Argentine) were determined, in order to differentiate them by geographical origin through the application of chemometric methods. A qualitative pollen analysis was performed by microscopy. The physicochemical characteristics were determined by Association of Official Analytical Chemists methods. Correspondence analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) were performed. Forty‐five per cent of honeys were monofloral; nearly half of them correspond to native species—among which, Salix humboldtiana, Baccharis sp. and Ziziphus mistol stood out. Physicochemical and microbiological analysis showed acceptable quality for honeys. CA characterized significantly honeys from four different EUs using all pollen data. While forward stepwise coupled to LDA identified 14 significant variables to build a discriminatory model with three significant discriminant functions, a cumulative variance of 94% was reached. Thus, 86% of the samples were correctly classified. PCA and LDA applied to physicochemical data allowed to distinguish three different groups with a significant function (p < 0.01) that explained 90% of the total variability. Honey corresponding to EU III Subandean Hills of Santa Bárbara was the most accurately classified by pollen and physicochemical data. The application of chemometric methods to pollen data and physicochemical parameters may be a useful tool to determine honey geographical origin. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this work was to develop a puffed quinoa bar with beehive products of high content of phenolic compounds, based on acceptability and perception of consumers. A rotational central composite design of three variables (honey, pollen and propolis) was used for food product formulation. The responses to optimize were sensorial acceptability and polyphenol content. Next to acceptability a check-all-that-apply (CATA) test was performed with 115 consumers. Preference maps were used to relate acceptability and sensorial attributes of bars that cause rejection or acceptance.

The aim was to develop a snack bar using regional food products. The formulation included traditional cereals and amaranth, quinoa, sunflower, flax, chia, sesame and poppy seeds subjected to different treatments. Two sensory evaluations were carried out to evaluate acceptability. Snack bars containing toasted seeds presented high acceptability by the consumer. Amaranth, quinoa, chia and sunflower significantly increased the acceptability. The sensory methods applied allowed for the selection of ingredients and processing technologies that increase the preference of consumers.