STUDY OF PHYSICOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITIES IN HONEY COLLECTED FROM DIFFERENT LOCATIONS OF ALGERIA

In order to establish standards for the identification of the main honey in our country, we propose to determine its physicochemical characteristics, in addition to carrying out a thorough study of the antioxidant activity and mineral analysis of five types of honey from the north of Algeria. The characterization criteria used for the physicochemical parameters are: pH, acidity, electrical conductivity, ash as well as the moisture content. It is worthy of mentioning that the antioxidant activity of the different samples was evaluated by two methods: The Ferric Reducing Ability of Plasma (FRAP) and the trapping of the free radical DPPH. Next, determination of the mineral profile was carried out by atomic absorption spectrometry. The physicochemical results showed that there were differences from one sample of honey and another as they corresponded with the international standards. Positive correlations were found between total phenolics (R-2 = 0.937)/flavonoids (R-2 = 0.93) and the antioxidant power determined. The mineral analysis revealed the presence of K, Na, Fe, Cu, Co and Ni in the samples with mean values: 276.36, 86.196, 0.1461, 0.1279, 0.8174 and 0.0564 ppm respectively. The honey samples were not free of heavy metals, but their level was well below permitted levels. It is considered among the least polluted foods. The resultants showed that hives are usually located at a far distance from one or more of the possible sources of pollution.