Retama sphaerocarpa, Atractylis serratuloides and Eruca sativa honeys from Algeria: Pollen dominance and volatile profiling (HS-SPME/GC–MS)

[Display omitted] •Three types of monofloral honey produced in arid and semiarid areas of Algeria has been characterized according to palynological analysis and volatile profile.•Some volatile compounds were found as characteristic for Retama sphaerocarpa, Atractylis serratuloides and Eruca sativa honey.•Some compounds were characteristics such as dimethyl trisulfide in Eruca honey, lilac aldehyde and lilac aldehyde D in Retama honey and 2-naphthalene methanol, decahydro-α,α,4a-trimethyl-8-methylene-, [2R-(2α,4aα,8aβ)], 1,6,10-dodecatrien-3-ol,3,7,11-trimethyl-, (E), 1,6-Octadien-3-ol,3,7- dimethyl and phenol, 2-methoxy in Atractylis honey. The volatile fraction of three monofloral honey types produced in arid and semiarid areas of Algeria was studied to establish a link between their chemical composition and their botanical origin. Palynological analysis was performed to confirm the main botanical origin. Volatile extraction using HS-SPME coupled to GC–MS revealed exclusive components for each type: 1,6,10-dodecatrien-3-ol,3,7,11-trimethyl-, (E); 1,6-octadien-3-ol,3,7- dimethyl; phenol, 2-methoxy and 2-naphtalene methanol, decahydro-α,α,4a- trimethyl-8-methylene-, [2R-(2α,4aα,8a,8aβ)] for Atractylis honey, lilac aldehyde and lilac aldehyde D for Retama honey, and dimethyl trisulfide for Eruca. The PCA analysis made it possible to correlate some volatile compounds with the most important pollen types, and to evaluate the authenticity related to the geographical and botanical origin of the honey.