THE CHARACTERIZATION OF BLOSSOM HONEYS FROM TWO PROVINCES OF PAKISTAN

Journal Article

ANSARI, K.A. KHAN, A.A. AL-GHAMDI and M.J. . 2016

• المجلة \ الصحيفة: Italian Journal of Food Science
• رقم العدد: 28
• رقم الإصدار السنوي: 28
• الصفحات: 625-638

مستخلص المنشور

Honey is a natural sweet material made by honeybees from floral nectar, plant secretion or
excretion of insects (which suck the sap from living plant parts), that honeybees collect,
modify and intermix with their own particular substances, deposit and leave it in the cells
of the comb to ripen and mature (MENDES et al., 1998).
Humans have used honey as a reliable sweetener for centuries. Honey holds a particular
place in the food and medical industries, and it has been regarded as a highly nutritive
food in many civilizations (FEÁS et al., 2010 a).
Pakistan has diverse landscape, climate and environmental conditions, including sandy
beaches, deserts, high mountains and pictorial valleys, each featuring specific vegetation.
The country has a great potential for honey production because of its congenial climate
conditions and variety of bee flora. Punjab, the most populous province of Pakistan, has
the majority of its bee flora in the northern and central regions, where an ample amount of
honey is harvested (IZHAR-UL-HAQ et al., 2010). Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) also has
environmental conditions that are conducive for the growth of high floral biodiversity that
contributes to honey production, and its export to the Middle East and western countries
(MAIRAJ et al., 2008).