Spanish honeys with quality brand: a multivariate approach to physicochemical parameters, microbiological quality, and floral origin

Abstract

This study consisted of a palynological, microbiological, and physicochemical characterization of fifteen samples of Spanish honey sold under quality brands with different botanical and geographical origins from two consecutive harvest years (2010 and 2011). Eight of the fifteen honey samples were classified as monofloral honey from botanical origins Persea americana, Castanea sativa, Rosmarinus officinalis, Eucalyptus sp., and Thymus sp. With regard to microbiological analyses, mold, and yeast counting, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, sulfite-reducing clostridia, and Escherichia coli were not detected in any of the samples. Aerobic mesophilic microorganisms were detected only in some samples and the counts in these cases were low. Despite the great variability between samples, the results obtained in the physicochemical analysis were consistent with the limits set by the Council Directive 2001/100. Honey samples showed high variability between two consecutive harvests, since, even if they had similar geographical origins they showed different nectar floral origins. Mieles españolas con marca de calidad: un enfoque multivariado de par ametros fisicoqu ımicos, calidad microbiol ogica y origen floral Este estudio consisti o en la caracterizaci on bot anica, microbiol ogica y fisicoqu ımica de quince muestras de miel espanolas acogidas a marcas de calidad diferenciada de diferentes or ıgenes bot anicos y geogr aficos y procedentes de dos cosechas consecutivas (años 2010 y 2011). Ocho de las quince muestras de miel estudiadas fueron clasificadas como mieles monoflorales de Persea americana, Castanea sativa, Rosmarinus officinalis, Eucalyptus sp. y Thymus sp. En relaci on a los an alisis microbiol ogicos los recuentos de mohos y levaduras, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, clostridios sulfito reductores y Escherichia coli no fueron detectados en ninguna de las muestras. Se detectaron microorganismos aerobios mes ofilos solo en algunas muestras y en este caso los recuentos fueron bajos. Aunque se detectaron coliformes, estos podr ıan estar asociados a un origen ambiental. A pesar de la gran variabilidad entre las muestras, los resultados obtenidos en el an alisis fisicoqu ımico se encontraron dentro de los l ımites establecidos por la Directiva del Consejo 2001/100. Las muestras de miel mostraron una gran variabilidad entre cosechas porque aunque tuvieron un mismo origen geogr afico, hubo diferencias en su origen floral.

Antibacterial Action Mechanisms of Honey: Physiological Effects of Avocado, Chestnut, and Polyfloral Honey upon Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli

“…Similar compounds were found not only in the chestnut, but also in the polyfloral honey samples tested in this study. Moreover, another two unknown compounds, probably kynurenic acid derivates, were found in both samples, in which Castanea sativa pollen was the predominant or secondary pollen-type found [17,36]. No specific phenolic compounds have been described in avocado honey.…”

“…Three samples of raw Spanish honey from different botanical and geographical origins [avocado honey (AH) and chestnut honey (ChH) from the Protected Denomination of Origin "Miel de Granada", and an organic polyfloral honey (PH) from the province of León (Spain)] were used. These honey samples were previously characterized [36] and were selected from a total of sixteen samples because of their higher antibacterial effects [17].…”

Prediction of Physicochemical Properties in Honeys with Portable Near-Infrared (microNIR) Spectroscopy Combined with Multivariate Data Processing

“…On the other hand, the color is one of the most common commercial attributes of honey. Consumers have preferences and the particular tonalities in honey depend on the botanical origin, deriving from certain chemical compounds such as the polyphenols, carotenoids, or minerals [ 14 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ]. Consequently, the correct classification of botanical origin of honeys based on color allows beekeepers and exporters to determine the most advantageous market destination for this apicultural product [ 14 ].…”

Assessment of the Microbiological Profile, Species Diversity and Antimicrobial Susceptibility of Recovered Bacteria from Retail Honeys in Turkey

“…Honey being consumed without undergoing any prior heat treatment or preservation techniques requires strict attention to be paid to good manufacturing practices during its production. Previously reported studies from different countries have shown that retail honey can contain vegetative and spore-forming bacteria, yeast and mold (Ceauşi et al, 2009;Kačániová et al, 2012;Dümen et al, 2013;Erkan et al, 2015;Kunová et al, 2015;Moujanni et al, 2017;Combarros-Fuertes et al, 2019). Besides, most of these studies focused on determining microbiological profile rather than microbial diversity at species level from the samples.…”