Kefir is a fermented product obtained from goat, sheep and cow milk as a result of lactic acid and ethyl alcohol fermentation. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the possibility of producing an alternative functional kefir product from almond milk. It was enriched with banana and honey to improve its sensory properties. Samples were stored at +4oC for 14 days. The pH and dry matter of samples containing almond milk were lower than those containing cow’s milk. Serum separation increased with the increase of almond milk ratio. The use of banana increased dry matter and viscosity, and decreased serum separation. pH, dry matter and viscosity decreased during storage. The highest L* value was observed in the control kefir produced from 100% cow’s milk, and the lowest in the samples containing honey and banana on the 1st day of storage. It can be said that the addition of honey increases the b* value and the addition of banana decreases the b* value. As almond milk ratio and storage time increased, bacteria counts decreased. The lactococci counts of the samples with banana added (except for the control) were higher than the others. In the samples with banana and honey, a higher increase in yeast count was observed during storage compared to plain kefir (control sample). It can be said that the use of almond milk reduces the general acceptability of kefir. Almond milk can be successfully used in kefir production as a substitute for cow’s milk, if sweeteners, fruit and thickeners are used.

The types and densities of honeyed plants vary depending on the altitude. This causes the amount and Physicochemical structure of honey produced in apiaries of different altitudes to change. In this study, honey harvest from the honeybee colonies placed at different altitudes in the same geographical region was carried out in the first week of September. Standard laboratory methods were used to determine some physicochemical properties of the honey samples. Some of the minimum and maximum average values obtained as a result of the analysis of honey samples; moisture 14.70% and 18.60%, free acidity 20.50 meq/kg and 25.30 meq/kg, pH 3.20 and 4.30, EC 0.22 and 0.44 mS/cm, fructose 32% to 45%, glucose 0.10% to 0.18%, sucrose from 0.66% 1.80%, maltose ranged from 0.66% to 1.80%. Also, HMF ranged from 1.80 mg/kg to 3.50 mg/kg, proline 530.00 mg/kg and 710.00 mg/kg, Density from 1.44 g/cm3 to 1.49 g/cm3, Invertase 20.30 U/kg-28.50 U/kg, Diastase activity 13.23-19.07 and Total phenolic content ranged from 76.00-94.00 g. It has been determined that the physicochemical structures of honey produced at different heights are statistically different from each other. This study aims to determine the effect of altitude difference on the quantity and physicochemical structure of honey.

Honey is a popular product consumed for its health benefits. It is an effective antimicrobial an antioxidant agent. Globally, palynological and chemical methods are among the means of authenticating honey quality, geographical origin and floral origin. Six honey samples from six Nigerian towns (Abi, Ikom, Lokpanta, Nsukka, Okigwe and Shaki) were subjected to the aforementioned tests. Eighty-six pollen taxa were recorded in all the samples. The richest sample with seventy-three taxa was from Nsukka, followed successively by Okigwe, Lokpanta, Shaki, Ikom and Abi samples with sixty-eight, sixty-seven, sixty-two, fifty-nine and fifty-seven pollen species respectively. The oil palm Elaeis guineensis pollen dominated the samples in different proportions except Shaki honey dominated by Acacia spp., The commonest plant family was Fabaceae (Caesalpinioideae, Mimosoideae, Papilionideae) with twenty-one taxa followed by Euphorbiaceae, Combretaceae, with four representatives and Rubiaceae with three taxa each. The physico-chemical analysis carried out were total moisture, total ash content, colour assessment, percentage of total solids, relative density, acidity, and Fischer’s Test. The samples were found to concur with the international standards for honey.

Water kefir is a fermented probiotic beverage produced by fermentation of dried sugary fruits and sugar using water kefir grains. Sucrose is used as a sugar source in the traditional production of water kefir. The aim of this study is to determine the effects of grape molasses, honey and unrefined sugar on water kefir grains instead of sucrose. In the study, 4 groups were formed: grape molasses (10 g), honey (10 g), unrefined sugar (10 g) and refined sugar (10 g). 2 g of water kefir grain and 500 mL of drinking water were used for each group. And each group samples were fermented for 25°C 48 hours. The study continued for 5 weeks. The pH values and the titratable acidity values of water kefir samples and the weight of water kefir grains were determinated once every two day, while microbiological analyzes (Lactobacillus spp., Lactococcus spp. and yeast contents) and ethanol content of samples were determinate once every 15 days. In this study; it has been observed that the use of different sugars has no significant effect on the weights of the water kefir grains. In addition, it was determined that the Lactococcus spp. and yeast amounts in the water kefirs were higher in the samples produced by using honey and grape molasses. As a result, it was revealed that grape molasses, honey and unrefined sugar could be used as fermentation substrate in production of water kefir. At the same time, water kefir can be shown as an alternative fermented product for vegan consumers with allergies to dairy products.

Honey is known to be a natural food product with antibacterial and wound-healing properties. Among its different types, some attributed more with medical applications including Manuka honey. In this study, some wound healing-related parameters were systematically investigated on two different types of Turkish honey (Chestnut and Anzer), in comparison with Manuka honey. Chestnut honey had considerable amount of hydrogen peroxide (5 μg/mL) whereas Manuka and Anzer honey did not contain any. Additionally, Chestnut honey had the highest acidity among all tested samples (24.50 meq/kg), as well as higher antioxidant activity (IC50 ; 2.45 mg/ml) than those of Anzer (13.02 mg/ml) and Manuka honey (6.27 mg/ml). It was also demonstrated that Chestnut honey displayed a considerable antimicrobial activity against selected pathogens. On the other hand, in the scratch assay performed as a model for the wound healing process, Anzer honey induced the highest cell proliferation corresponding to almost total wound closure for all concentrations tested. Overall, the results showed that the Turkish Chestnut and Anzer honey samples had distinguished characteristics for wound healing that is comparable to Manuka honey, and therefore are both promising candidates for use in clinical applications.

The identification of plants in which the bees forage is key in establishing bee farms and increasing honey production. In this study pollen analysis of honey samples from the southeastern part of Nigeria was carried out to ascertain their floral sources and ecological origin. The honey samples were acetolyzed and microscopically studied to determine the pollen types. A total of seventy-one pollen types belonging to forty-one families of plants were identified. The honey samples were dominated by pollen grains from the families of Arecaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Myrtaceae, Irvigiaceae, Fabaceae, Combretaceae/Melastomataceae, and phyllanthaceae. Some of the dominant pollen grain identified include Elaeis guineensis, Alchornea cordifolia, Hymenocardia acida, Ocimum gratissimum, Syzygium guineense, Nauclea latifolia and Afzelia africana. Out of the six samples studied Njikoka sample was monofloral having Mimosa pigra as predominant pollen while Ayamelum, Ekwusigo, Nsukka, Ezeagu, and Udenu samples are multifloral containing Elaeis guineensis, Phyllanthus sp., Piliostigma reticulatum, Irvingia sp., Alchornea cordifolia, and Lannea sp. as major secondary pollen. All the samples analyzed have Elaeis guineensis in common except Ezeagu, indicating that these plants are present in all five locations. These results can also be used as a tool in the geographical identification of Southeastern Nigeria honey from other geopolitical zones.

In this study, tetracycline and streptomycin group antibiotic residues were investigated in packaged and open sold honey. For this purpose, a total of 60 honey samples, which were 30 of each were used as material. Honey samples were taken from various sales places located in Sivas province. ELISA method was used for the analysis and commercial test kits were used. According to the analysis results; tetracycline was found in 73.3% (22 samples) of the packaged honey and streptomycin was found in all samples. Tetracycline and streptomycin were determined as positive in open honeys were respectively 60% (18 samples) and 93.3% (28 samples). Tetracycline levels were between 0.12-371.43 ppb (mean 13.91 ± 12.33) in packaged honey and 0.02-13.32 ppb (mean 1.75 ± 0.5) in open honeys. Streptomycin levels were 1.30-250.2 ppb (mean 25.8 ± 10.8) in packaged honey and 0.19-22.71 ppb (mean 8.21 ± 5.2) in open honeys. Antibiotic residue was not found in one sample of open honeys. The findings suggest that, although illegal, some medicines are used in beekeeping or that bees are exposed to antibiotics that are added to the feed or water of other animals. These findings pose a potential risk to the consumer.

The objective of this study was to develop a rapid infrared technique to determine 10 key quality parameters (sucrose, glucose, fructose, reducing sugar, 5-HMF, °Brix, moisture content, water activity, pH and free acidity) in honey by using new generation portable and handheld devices. The composition of honey samples (n=59) collected from different parts of Turkey was analyzed by using established reference methods, giving wide range of concentrations for each parameter. The levels of sucrose and 5-HMF in some samples were above the established regulatory limits (Codex Alimentarius and European Union standards), indicating possible adulteration or process and storage abuse. Spectra were collected by using portable Fourier-Transformed infrared (FTIR) and handheld NIR (Near Infrared) spectrometers. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) approach was used to correlate the spectral features with compositional reference values, giving strong linear correlation coefficients and standard errors of prediction. Although both systems performed similarly, portable FTIR system was superior in predictions of sucrose, 5-HMF and free acidity while portable NIR system performed noticeably better for °Brix and moisture content. The data indicates that all of the 10 parameters can be measured within the minutes using both systems, providing reliable screening capabilities, flexibility and the potential for in-field applications.

The quantitative and qualitative analysis of honey components is the object of this study. These analyses are considered a physicochemical and melissopalynological tool that allows the study of some characteristics of honey. The analysis of ten (10) samples of Algerian honey is carried out to determine the pH, water content, electrical conductivity, ash content, acidity, hydroxymethylfurfural content, proteins, and sugar content. According to the obtained results, the physico-chemical parameters of the studied honeys comply with the European and international standards. The pollen spectrum indicated the presence of 23 plant families, mainly Fabaceae, encompassing a total of 65 honey species visited by foragers. Of the 10 honeys sampled and analyzed, six were monofloral, with the remainder showing no apparent dominance of any honey type. The most frequent plant species were eucalyptus (Eucalyptus sp.), Italian sainfoin (Hedysarum coronarium), and chickweed (Lathyrus sp.). Furthermore, the results obtained indicate that all honey (monofloral and polyfloral) showed a high degree of variability in the number of pollen grains.

Using functional foods which are recently a rising value in the food science arouses curiosity in terms of health among people. Honey, as a natural functional food, might play an important role in the increase of this value with a large but conscious use of it in kitchens. Having a prebiotic property with its oligosaccharide components, honey has a characteristic of supporting the increase of probiotic Bifidobacterium and lactobacilli bacteria. In the current study, the culinary status of honey was investigated depending on the views of professional chef trainers. For honey that shows different compositions, chefs point out that, because of the changes of nectars in the flora collected by bees, the qualitative honey bought from local producers could be a more functional food by using it with sauces, milk products like yoghurt and cheese, with such spices as ginger, turmeric, black pepper, and cinnamon at room temperature without an application of heat treatment.