Physicochemical properties and antioxidant activities of thermally treated poly-floral honey from Chire woreda, Sidamo regional State, Ethiopia

Abstract

Honey is a health-giving natural product. Researchers are curious to study the processing mechanisms of honey without harming its quality. This study focused on the effect of thermal treatments on the poly-floral honey obtained from Chire Woreda, Sidamo regional state, Ethiopia. The collected research material was processed with different thermal treatments, and the quality parameters were checked. However, before conducting the experiment a preliminary assessment was conducted in the selected Woreda to determine the exact heating temperature and time committed by the beekeepers. Based on the information generated the research material was thermally treated at a temperature and time of 55 & 95°C for 0.5 h, 1 h, and 2 h respectively. The quality parameters (physicochemical properties, total phenolic, total flavonoid contents, and antioxidant activities) were determined by the standard methods, and the values were compared against the national and international standard limits. JMP pro 13 and origin software were used for statistical analysis. The study revealed that heating honey with a high temperature and prolonged time exhibits a significant effect on the quality. The HMF, free acid, total phenolic, total flavonoid, and antioxidant potential of honey were increased after thermal treatments, but, the moisture, diastase activity, and the sugar contents including reducing and non-reducing were measured with low value when the thermal treatments are increased; and this indicated that thermal treatment has both positive and negative effects on the honey quality. Therefore, identifying the optimum processing time and temperature is very important in maintaining the quality of honey.