Recent Advances in Analytical Techniques for the Determination of Authenticity and Adulteration of Honey and its Products

Honey is among the most consumed foods along the world with vast nutritional value. However, there is a lot of concern about the safety and the quality of honey products since there are a lot of incidents of honey adulteration. Furthermore, honey food industries, in response to food fraud, are seeking to detect the honey authenticity of honey products. The verification of honey authentication is very difficult. For this reason new analytical methods were developed including liquid and gas chromatography coupled to mass detectors. The melissopalynological characterization, the Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) content, the diastase activity, the polyphenol content, the sugars profile are among the most used parameters investigated for food adulteration and authenticity, In this chapter all different modern analytical methods used for the determination of all these parameters will be discussed. Finally, all different chemometric methods used in order to provide safe information about the authenticity and adulteration of honey will also be presented.

Keywords: Honey Adulteration, Honey Authenticity, Modern Analytical Techniques, Pollen Analysis.