QUALITATIVE PARAMETERS OF MONOFLORAL HONEYS FROM SLOVAKIA AND AUSTRIA AND THE ROLE OF WATER ACTIVITY

The quality evaluation and physicochemical parameters assessment of Slovak and Austrian monofloral honeys were performed. In total 65 local monofloral honeys denoted by beekeepers as acacia (n = 20), rapeseed (n = 10), linden (n = 10), honeydew (n = 6), forest (n = 12) and chestnut (n = 7) were collected. The parameters such as moisture content, water activity, electrical conductivity, pH, free acidity, and 5‑hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) content were assessed for physicochemical characterization and comparison of all monofloral honeys. Electrical conductivity showed to be the most significant indicator for honeydew origin, that together with pH and aw led to 81.54 % correct classification of samples according to honey type using multivariate statistical analysis. In context to undesirable fermentation and spoilage, aw value below 0.600 showed to be an important control parameter that could be recommended to control especially for creamed rapeseed honeys.