Determination of the geographical origin of Slovenian black locust, lime and chestnut honey.

The geographical origin of three Slovenian unifloral honey types (black locust, lime and chestnut) was investigated by analysis of some physico-chemical parameters, the elemental content using total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (TXRF) and the stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios using isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). The results were interpreted by chemometric methods. A total of 122 samples of Slovenian black locust, lime and chestnut honeys were collected from domestic beekeepers all over Slovenia for three years. Slovenia is a small country by area, but paedologically and climatically diverse, therefore offering interesting possibilities for studying geographical influences. The combination of the investigated parameters offers the possibility of distinguishing among samples of specific honey types from the four different Slovenian natural-geographical macroregions, namely the Alpine, Dinaric, Pannonnian and Mediterranean regions. Lime honey samples were 100% correctly classified, while the success rates for black locust and chestnut honeys were slightly lower at 98.2% and 94.6%, respectively.

[1]  J. Spangenberg,et al.  The application of NMR and MS methods for detection of adulteration of wine, fruit juices, and olive oil. A review , 2003, Analytical and bioanalytical chemistry.

[2]  A. Rossmann,et al.  Detection of royal jelly adulteration using carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratio analysis. , 2006, Rapid communications in mass spectrometry : RCM.

[3]  J. Fraga,et al.  Characterization of honey from the Canary Islands : determination of the mineral content by atomic absorption spectrophotometry , 2005 .

[4]  R. García-Villanova,et al.  Geographical discrimination of honeys by using mineral composition and common chemical quality parameters , 2000 .

[5]  Jonathan W. White.  Internal Standard Stable Carbon Isotope Ratio Method for Determination of C-4 Plant Sugars in Honey: Collaborative Study, and Evaluation of Improved Protein Preparation Procedure , 1992 .

[6]  F. Heredia,et al.  Characterisation of Spanish thyme honeys by their physicochemical characteristics and mineral contents , 2004 .

[7]  L. Doner,et al.  The 13C/12C Ratio in Honey , 1978 .

[8]  G. Protano,et al.  Minor and trace elements in different honey types produced in Siena County (Italy) , 2008 .

[9]  R. M. P. Crecente,et al.  Pattern recognition analysis applied to classification of honeys from two geographic origins , 1993 .

[10]  P. Kump,et al.  Determination of trace elements in bee honey, pollen and tissue by total reflection and radioisotope X-ray fluorescence spectrometry , 1996 .

[11]  D. Titěra,et al.  Analysis of minority honey components: Possible use for the evaluation of honey quality , 2007 .

[12]  S. Bogdanov,et al.  Minerals in honey: environmental, geographical and botanical aspects , 2007 .

[13]  J. White,et al.  Honey protein as internal standard for stable carbon isotope ratio detection of adulteration of honey. , 1989, Journal - Association of Official Analytical Chemists.

[14]  E. Bruneau,et al.  Sensory analysis applied to honey: state of the art , 2004 .

[15]  E. Piasentier,et al.  Stable isotope ratio analysis for authentication of lamb meat. , 2003, Meat science.

[16]  T. Juan,et al.  Application of a statistical approach to the classification of honey by geographic origin , 1995 .

[17]  Carlos Herrero,et al.  Chemometric classification of honeys according to their type. II. Metal content data , 1999 .

[18]  M. Danzart,et al.  Deuterium nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and stable carbon isotope ratio analysis/mass spectrometry of certain monofloral honeys. , 2000, Journal of AOAC International.

[19]  Urška Kropf,et al.  Linear Regression Model of the Ash Mass Fraction and Electrical Conductivity for Slovenian Honey , 2008 .

[20]  L. Doner,et al.  Carbon-13/Carbon-12 Ratio Is Relatively Uniform Among Honeys , 1977, Science.

[21]  P. Kump,et al.  Application of total reflection X-ray spectrometry in combination with chemometric methods for determination of the botanical origin of Slovenian honey. , 2009, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[22]  L. P. Oddo,et al.  Electrical conductivity, ash, colour and specific rotatory power in Italian unifloral honeys , 1991 .

[23]  Mojca Jamnik,et al.  Evaluation of the phenolic content, antioxidant activity and colour of Slovenian honey , 2007 .

[24]  Marijan Nečemer,et al.  Determination of trace and minor elements in Slovenian honey by total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy , 2005 .

[25]  J. White,et al.  Stable carbon isotope ratio analysis of honey: validation of internal standard procedure for worldwide application , 1998 .

[26]  M. Grenier-loustalot,et al.  Study and validity of 13C stable carbon isotopic ratio analysis by mass spectrometry and 2H site-specific natural isotopic fractionation by nuclear magnetic resonance isotopic measurements to characterize and control the authenticity of honey. , 2007, Analytica chimica acta.

[27]  L. P. Oddo,et al.  Harmonized methods of melissopalynology , 2004 .

[28]  G. Downey,et al.  Near infrared spectral fingerprinting for confirmation of claimed PDO provenance of honey , 2009 .

[29]  Juan Carlos García,et al.  Preliminary chemometric study on the use of honey as an environmental marker in Galicia (northwestern Spain). , 2006 .