Microsoft Word - 8 Mircea Oroian_corectat.docx


   
 

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Journal homepage: www.fia.usv.ro/fiajournal 
Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering,  

Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Romania  
Volume XVI, Issue 1  – 2017, pag. 54 - 60 

 

 
IM PAC T O F AD ULTER ATIO N W ITH G LU COS E, FRUC TOS E A ND 

HYD ROLYS ED IN ULIN S YR U P ON HO NEY PH YS ICO- CH EM ICA L 

PR OPERTIES 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC1, *Mircea OROIAN1, Vlad OLARIU1 

 
1Faculty of Food Engineering, Stefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Romania 

m.oroian@fia.usv.ro 
*Corresponding author 

Received 15th February 2017, accepted 17th March 2017 
 

 
Abstract: The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of the adulteration with glucose, fructose, 
hydrolysed inulin syrup on honey physico-chemical properties (pH, aw, electrical conductivity (EC), 
water activity and colour parameters (L*, a*, b*, chroma)) of three honey samples of different 
botanical origins (acacia, tilia and polyfloral). The honeys were adulterated in different percentages 
(10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% respectively) with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin syrup. The 
moisture content of all the three samples did not exceed the maximum allowable level of 20% 
established by the European Commission. The physico-chemical parameters (pH, aw, electrical 
conductivity (EC), water activity and colour parameters (L*, a*, b*, chroma)) of the analysed honeys 
are in agreement with other studies reported in the international scientific literature. The physico-
chemical parameters prediction, in function of the botanical origin, adulteration agent and 
adulteration agent percentage have been made using the analysis of variance (ANOVA). According to 
the ANOVA it was observed that in the case of L*, pH and electrical conductivity (EC) there is a good 
correlation (R2>0.90) between the parameters and the botanical origin, adulteration agent and 
adulteration agent percentages. 
 
Keywords: honey, physico-chemical parameters, adulteration, ANOVA 
 
 
1. Introduction 
 
Honey is a natural product produced by 
honey bees (Apismelifera L.) from various 
secretions of plants [1]. The act of 
deliberately adulteration degrades the 
quality of food meant to sale, either by the 
addition or exchange of low-grade 
materials or by the elimination of various 
important chemical compounds is termed 
as “food adulteration” [2]. Adulterated 
honey samples are labelled as natural pure 
honey and have the same price like 
original ones. Normally, honey 
adulterations do not have an impact on the 
human health. The identification of the 
adulterated honey is an important process 

and it is difficult to identify this fact by 
producers, consumers, retailers and for the 
authorities too [3], [4]. The honeys have 
been adulterated over the last years with 
different agents such as: starch syrup [4], 
fructose and glucose [5], high fructose 
corn syrup (HFCS) [6], sugar syrups [7], 
glucose [8] and maltose syrup [9]. 
The aim of this study is to evaluate the 
influence of the adulteration with glucose, 
fructose, hydrolysed inulin syrup on honey 
physico-chemical properties (pH, aw, 
electrical conductivity (EC) and colour 
parameters (L*, a*, b*, chroma)) of three 
samples of honey of different botanical 
origins (acacia, tilia and polyfloral). 
 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 
Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017 

 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC, Mircea OROIAN, Vlad OLARIU, Impact of adulteration with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup on honey physicochemical properties, Food and Environment Safety, Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017, pag. 54– 60 
 

55 
 

2. Materials and methods  
 
Materials 
3 honey samples of three different 
botanical origins (acacia, tilia and 
polyfloral) were purchased from local 
beekeepers from the Suceava County. The 
honey samples have been adulterated with 
glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrups in different percentages 10%, 20%, 
30%, 40% and 50%, respectively. 
 
Physico-chemical properties 
The physico-chemical properties (pH, aw, 
electrical conductivity, colour parameters 
(L*, a*, b*, chroma and hue angle) were 
determined accordingly to the Harmonised 
methods of the International Honey 
Commission [10]. 
 
Statistical analysis 
 
Statistical analysis was performed using a 
Unscrambler X 10.1 (Camo Norway) 
software system. The data corresponding 
to each variable were analyzed by one-
factor analysis of variance (ANOVA). 
 
3. Results and discussion 
 
In this study the influence of the 
adulteration agents (glucose, fructose and 
hydrolysed inulin syrup) on the physico-
chemical parameters (colour (L*, a*, b*, 
C*, hue angle), pH, aw and electrical 
conductivity) of three difference honeys 
(acacia, tilia and polyfloral) was evaluated. 
The experimental data were subjected to 
ANOVA in order to establish if the honey 
type, adulteration agent or adulteration 
agent percentage are influencing 
significantly the physico-chemical 
parameters and if these parameters can be 
used in the identification of honey 
adulteration. Table 1 presents the physico-
chemical parameters of the authentic 
honey analysed. 

Table 1. 
Physico-chemical parameters of authentic honeys  

 
Parameter Acacia Polyfloral Tilia 
L* 48.96 37.90 36.13 
a* 0.20 0.30 0.10 
b* 7.90 3.40 0.18 
C* 1.33 3.40 1.86 
Hue angle -85.33 85.10 -87.70 
pH 4.11 3.72 3.89 
Aw 0.801 0.806 0.764 
EC 
(µS/cm) 

59.40 207.10 413.50 

 
Honey colour depends on the content of 
phenolic compounds, pollen and minerals. 
In the present study acacia honey has 
exhibited the highest colour purity (Table 
1), aspect highlighted by Kadar et al. 
[11]for acacia honey samples from 
Romania and Spain. Honey polyfloral 
presented the most pronounced yellow 
components, indicated by high values of 
b* (Table 1) and chromaticity angle H. 
Water is the second important parameter of 
honey. The water activity represents a 
proportional unit with the free water in the 
food products. A lower level of water 
activity than 0.60 is specific to 
microbiological sTable products. The 
values of the water activity measured in 
this study are in agreement with those 
reported by other scientists [12], [13]. 
The pH of the honeys is an important 
parameter for the extraction and keeping of 
the products, because it influences texture, 
stability and shelf life [14].  
The honeys’ pH ranged between  3.72 and 
4.57 in the same range with those reported 
in other papers in the case of Romanian 
honeys [15]. 
The electrical conductivity is influenced by 
the botanical origin, ash content, organic 
acids concentration and some complex 
sugars and polyols. The electrical 
conductivity was in the same range with 
those reported by other scientists in the 
case of Romanian honeys [16]. 
 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 
Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017 

 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC, Mircea OROIAN, Vlad OLARIU, Impact of adulteration with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup on honey physicochemical properties, Food and Environment Safety, Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017, pag. 54– 60 
 

56 
 

Influence of honey type 
 
The influence of honey type on honey 
physico-chemical parameters after the 
adulteration is shown in Table 2. The 
a*,pH and EC are not influenced by the 
addition of agents (P values are higher than 
0.05). In the case of the other parameters, 
the honey types influence the evolution of 

the parameters (L*, b*, c*, hue angle and 
aw). In the case of the electrical 
conductivity there can be observed higher 
values because the adulteration agents 
(glucose and hydrolysed inulin syrup) were 
prepared into acidified water (pH lower 
than 2). 
 

 
Table 2. 

Influence of honey type on physico-chemical parameters of adulterated honey 
 

Honey type Parameter 
Acacia Tilia Polyfloral F-value 

L* 52.23(51.16-53.30)a 39.55(38.48-40.62)b 39.7(38.7-40.8)b 202.8*** 
a* 0.96(0.60-1.32)ab 0.88(0.52-1.24)b 1.37(1.02-1.73)a 2.39ns 
b* -3.90(-5.68 - -2.13)c 1.46(-0.31-3.23)b 5.51(3.74-7.28)a 31.39*** 
C* 5.56(4.40-6.68)a 2.69(1.57-3.82)b 5.26(4.12-6.38)a 8.73*** 
Hue angle -60.64(-87.7—33.5)c -4.43(-31.5-22.6)b 72.9(45.8-100.1)a 27.19*** 
pH 3.46(3.31-3.61)a 3.33(3.18-3.48)ab 3.21(3.06-3.65)b 3.13ns 
Aw 0.80(0.80-0.81)a 0.79(0.79-0.80)b 0.81(0.80-0.81)a 9.24*** 
EC (µS/cm) 425.84(186.3-665.3)a 501.95(262.4-741.47)a 480.5(241.0-720.1)a 0.12ns 

Influence of adulteration agent 
 

The evolution of the physico-chemical 
parameters of adulterated honeys 
according to the adulteration agent used 
(glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup) is shown in Table 3. There can be 
observed that the addition of glucose, 
fructose or hydrolysed inulin syrup do not 
influence significantly the b* and hue 
angle, while in the case of C*, pH and 
electrical conductivity there can be 
observed a significant influence (P < 
0.001). The addition of glucose and 
hydrolysed inulin syrup in the honey 
decreases the values of pH and increases 
the values of the EC because the solutions 
are prepared at lower pH values (pH lower 
than 2).  
 
Influence of adulteration agent percentage 
 
The evolution of the physico-chemical 
parameters of the adulterated honeys in 

function of the adulteration agent 
percentage is shown in Table 4. In the case 
of L* there can be observed that the 
parameter values increase because the 
addition of the adulterated agent (which 
has L* values higher than honey) increases 
the luminosity. The addition of the 
adulteration agent influences significantly 
the evolution of the parameter. In the case 
of the a* and C* values there can be 
observed the same evolution like in the 
case of L* because of the same conditions, 
but there it cannot be observed a 
significant difference in function of the 
percentage of the adulteration agent (P > 
0.05). The water activity of the honey is 
influenced significantly by the addition of 
glucose, fructose or hydrolysed inulin 
syrup because these compounds influence 
the magnitude of the aw [13]. The electrical 
conductivity increases with the increase of 
the percentage of sugars added because 
they are prepared at pH lower than 2. 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 
Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017 

 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC, Mircea OROIAN, Vlad OLARIU, Impact of adulteration with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup on honey physicochemical properties, Food and Environment Safety, Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017, pag. 54– 60 
 

57 
 

Table 3. 
Influence of adulteration agent on honey physicochemical parameters 

Adulteration agent Parameter 
Glucose Fructose Hydrolysed inulin 

syrup 
P-value 

L* 44.1(42.9-45.2)b 44.05(42.9-45.2)ab 44.83(43.6-45.9)a 4,33* 
a* 0.66(0.33-0.99)b 1.27(0.89-1.66)a 1.28(0.90-1.67)a 4,07* 
b* 0.67(-0.94-2.28)a 2.23(0.32-4.13)a 0.16(-1.74-2.06)a 1,53ns 
C* 2.85(1.83-3.87)b 5.33(4.12-6.53)a 5.33(4.13-6.54)a 6,76*** 
Hue angle -13.1(-37.7-11.4)a 19.7(-9.4-48.7)a 1.33(-27.7-30.4)a 1,53ns 
pH 3.98(3.84-4.11)a 4.01(3.85-4.17)a 3.98(3.89-4.11)b 236,9*** 
Aw 0.81(0.80-0.81)a 0.80(0.79-0.81)b 0.80(0.80-0.81)ab 3,48* 
EC (µS/cm) 274.0(143.1-291.1)b 263.74(193.1-320.6)b 1270.5(1013-1527)a 34,87*** 

 
Table 4. 

Influence of adulterated agent percentage on honey physico-chemical parameters 

 
Adulteration agent percentage Parameter 

0 10 20 30 40 50 
P-value 

L* 42.17(39.6-
44.7)c 

42.4(41.0-
43.8)c 

43.2(41.8-
44.6)bc 

43.8(42.4-
45.2)bc 

44.3(42.9-
45.7)b 

47.0(45.6-
48.5)a 

5,91*** 

a* 0.61(-0.23-
1.46)a 

1.12(0.66-
1.58)a 

1.22(0.76-
1.68)a 

1.33(0.87-
1.79)a 

1.42(0.96-
1.87)a 

1.53(1.06-
2.01)a 

0,54ns 

b* 4.71(0.52-
8.91)b 

-0.08(-
2.63-

2.18)ab 

0.12(-
2.15-

2.40)ab 

0.61(-1.66-
2.88)ab 

-0.02(-2.29-
2.25)ab 

0.78(-1.49-
3.06)a 

0,96ns 

C* 3.85(1.19-
6.50)a 

4.68(3.24-
6.12)a 

4.01(2.57-
5.45)a 

5.27(3.83-
6.71)a 

5.28(3.84-
6.72)a 

5.94(4.50-
7.38)a 

0,74ns 

Hue angle -13.6(-77.6-
50.4)a 

-1.68)-
36.41-
33.04)a 

-0.80(-
35.5-
33.9)a 

7.86(-26.8-
42.6)a 

12.8(-25.8 – 
47.5)a 

21.2(-33.5-
55.9)a 

0,31ns 

pH 3.26(2.91-
3.62)a 

3.52(3.32-
3.71)a 

3.31(3.11-
3.50)a 

3.31(3.11-
3.50)a 

3.31(3.11-
3.50)a 

3.32(3.13-
3.51)a 

0,80ns 

aw 0.78(0.77-
0.79)d 

0.80(0.79-
0.80)c 

0.80(0.80-
0.81)bc 

0.80(0.80-
0.81)b 

0.80(0.80-
0.81)ab 

0.80(0.80-
0.81)a 

10,55*** 

EC 
(µS/cm) 

93.33(59.4-
113.5)f 

124.0(57.9-
286)e 

252.6(36-
501)d 

429.8(54-
1352)c 

613.6(34-
1921)b 

907.7(31-
2920)a 

3.31* 

Parameter prediction 
 
Based on the parameter values 
(experimental values), the evolution of the 
parameter based on honey type, 
adulteration agent and adulteration agent 
percentage using the ANOVA method has 
been predicted. The regression coefficients 
of the models obtained are shown in the 
Table 5. Based on the information data 
presented in the Table 5, the parameters 

which are well predicted by the honey 
type, adulteration agent and adulteration 
agent percentage are: L*, pH and electrical 
conductivity. The experimental vs. 
predicted values of L* and pH and 
electrical conductivity (EC) are shown in 
the Figs. 1-3. 
 

 
 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 
Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017 

 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC, Mircea OROIAN, Vlad OLARIU, Impact of adulteration with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup on honey physicochemical properties, Food and Environment Safety, Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017, pag. 54– 60 
 

58 
 

Table 5. 
Statistical parameters of the linear models for the physico-chemical parameters 

 

 L* a* b* C* Hue angle pH Aw 
Electrical 

conductivity 
R2 0.990 0.583 0.663 0.480 0.823 0.920 0.649 0.975 
F 147.788 2.001 2.805 1.320 6.636 16.401 2.637 54.645 

Pr> F < 0.0001 0.154 0.068 0.333 0.004 < 0.0001 0.080 < 0.0001 
 

 
Fig. 1. Predicted vs. experimental data for L* according to the ANOVA 

 

 
Fig. 2. Predicted vs. experimental data for pH according to the ANOVA 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 
Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017 

 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC, Mircea OROIAN, Vlad OLARIU, Impact of adulteration with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup on honey physicochemical properties, Food and Environment Safety, Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017, pag. 54– 60 
 

59 
 

 
Fig. 3. Predicted vs. experimental data for pH according to the ANOVA 

 
4. Conclusions 
 
The honey analysed were of three different 
botanical origins (acacia, tilia and 
polyfloral) and their physico-chemical 
parameters were in agreement with the 
international literature. The adulteration 
agents influence strongly the evolution of 
the physico-chemical parameters. The 
ANOVA analysis was a good method for 
the prediction of L*, pH and electrical 
conductivity (EC). 
 
Acknowledgement  
 
This work was supported by a grant of the 
Romanian National Authority for 
Scientific Research and Innovation, CNCS 
– UEFISCDI, project number PN-II-RU-
TE-2014-4-0110. 
 
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Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 
Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017 

 

 
Sorina ROPCIUC, Mircea OROIAN, Vlad OLARIU, Impact of adulteration with glucose, fructose and hydrolysed inulin 
syrup on honey physicochemical properties, Food and Environment Safety, Volume XVI, Issue 1 – 2017, pag. 54– 60 
 

60 
 

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