Studying some of Chemical and Physical Properties of Syrian Honey (Citrus sp., Pimpinella sp.) and the effect of storage on quality Attributes.

This research was conducted in the laboratories of the Department of Food Sciences and the Laboratory of Food Biotechnologies -Faculty of Agriculture - Damascus University- and The the central laboratory for the supply (Ministry of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection).The aim of this research was to study some of chemical and physical properties of citrus and Anise Syrian honey and the effect of storage on quality Attributes as well as determining the Correlations between total Phenolic, flavonoids, antioxidant activity and the type of honey, in addition to studying the effect of geographical location on some of the chemical and physical properties of honey. 24 honey samples were collected directly from beekeepers during the harvest season of 2019. There were 12 samples of anise honey from Hama, Aleppo and Damascus countryside governorates. and 12 citrus honey samples from Lattakia and Tartous governorates. The chemical and physical tests were performed on samples directly after the collection and after 12 months of storage at room temperature, at a rate of three replicates for each test. The result showed that There were significant differences (0.05>p) in chemical and physical properties between one type of honey samples as well as between the two types of honey (Citrus and anise honey). The results showed that anise honey samples were better in terms of low moisture and sucrose, high ash content, proline content, diastase enzyme activity, electrical conductivity value, total Phenolic content and antioxidant activity than citrus honey samples. However, citrus honey is distinguished by its low content of HMF and its high content of total flavonoids. A significant effect (0.05>p) was also observed for the geographical location on the chemical and physical properties of honey samples except for the soluble solids and pH of citrus honey, and the HMF content of anise honey where the effect was not significant. On the other hand, The storage of honey for 12 months at room temperature led to a significant decrease (0.05> p) in the moisture content, proline and the diastase enzyme activity, sucrose and maltose, and also decreased the content of phenols, total flavonoids and antioxidant activity of both types of honey. At the same time, the honey’s free acidity, HMF, glucose and fructose content, electrical conductivity, pH and color indexes increased. The studied quality indicators in the fresh and after storage samples were in conformity with the Syrian, Yemeni, Codex and European standard specifications, and this is an important indicator that enables the Syrian honey to compete in the global markets.