Profile Analysis of Major and Minor Honey Contents from Different African Countries

This study was conducted with the aim of assessing the quality of some African honey types and ruling on their suitability for export. Numbers of 22 honey samples were analyzed from five African countries, namely Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Cameroon, and Zimbabwe. Results showed that the total sugar content of honey samples varies between (51.59 %, sample 10), and (75.27 %, sample 19). Honey samples from Zimbabwe had significantly the highest value of fructose (39.33±0.19 %) followed by Libyan honey (38.91±0.52 %). On the other hand, sample (1) from Egypt gave the least value of fructose sugar content represented (26.73±0.42 %). All the honey samples from Algeria, Cameroon, and Zimbabwe did not exceed the standard limit of sucrose content (5 %) indicates that the bees were not artificially fed with sugar. Samples (17 and 18) from Zimbabwe were significantly the inferior of sucrose sugar content with averages (0.58±0.04 % and 0.58±0.01 %), respectively. In addition, sample (9) from Algeria was significantly superior of all honey samples in diastase number giving (35.2±0.46 µ/g). It is clear that two honey samples from each Algeria, Cameroon, and Zimbabwe were in an acceptable range of diastase number represented (35.2, 18.2 µ/g), (26.8, 17.52 µ/g) and (14.0, 13.9 µ/g), respectively. On the other hand, diastase number DN of all honey samples from Egypt and Libya was below the proposed standard limit. Libyan honey samples had significantly the highest HMF content ranged from (418.9±5.77 to 684.0±2.30 mg/kg). On the contrary, Algerian honey samples had the least significantly HMF content of all tested samples with range (5.10±0.57 to 19.9±0.26 mg/kg). For proline amino acid, all the honey samples from Cameroon, Libya, and Algeria contain higher proline content than the standard limit. The mean flavonoid content of the African honey samples was ranged from (0.02± 0.005 g/100g, sample 1) to (0.31±0.005 g/100g, samples 4 and 16), respectively. The results suggested that measuring flavonoids levels and proline amino acid could be used to study honey’s floral and geographical origins.