Chemical profiles of honeys originating from different floral sources and geographic locations examined by a combination of three extraction and analysis techniques

Abstract

The chemical profiles of Tasmanian Leatherwood and Manuka honeys from Tasmania and New Zealand have been compared by a combination of GC-MS analysis of volatiles and semi-volatiles, RP-HPLC-DAD analysis of phenolics and flavonoids and HPLC-DAD analysis of derivatised dihydroxyacetone, hydroxymethylfurfural and methylglyoxal. This study found that Tasmanian and New Zealand Manuka honeys have high concentrations of methylglyoxal. However, syringic acid was only detected in Manuka honeys grown in New Zealand. The Tasmanian honeys can be distinguished by the higher concentration of 3-phenyllactic acid in Manuka compared to Leatherwood floral sources.