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Last Updated :
21-Aug-2009
Codex
Alimentarius - Honey
Methods
of Pollen Analysis
Characteristics
NZ Honey - Cawthron Inst.
Bibliography
on NZ Beekeeping
Pollen
Analysis of NZ Honey - Moar.
Airborne's
Standard Sampling System
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Codex Alimentarius
- Honey
The Codex
Alimentarius Commission is an organisation run by the Joint
FAO/WHO. Its objectives are to create an international set of
food standards. The honey standard is regularly revised and
is now available on the Web. The Codex Alimentatius Commission
can be found on the Web
here and the FAO here.
The Codex standard is available as a PDF here.
Airborne Honey follows and applies the current Codex standard
for honey and in particular the standards
laid out for monofloral honeys.
The Codex also lists standard methods to be used in analysis
of various honey and this is available as a Word
DOC file
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Methods of
Melissopalynology (Pollen Analysis), Louveaux, Maurizio &
Vorwhol
Methods
for pollen analysis of honey. This paper details materials,
techniques and interpretation of pollen analysis and microscopical
analysis of honey.
PDF
Format 100kb 
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Characteristics
NZ Honey - Cawthron Inst.
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Sorry,
still working on this.....
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Bibliography
on NZ Beekeeping
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Sorry,
still working on this.....
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Pollen Analysis
of NZ Honey - N. T. MOAR
Botany Division, DSIR Private Bag, Christchurch,
New Zealand New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 1985,
Vol. 28: 39-70 0028 – 8233/85/2801-0039 © Crown copyright 1985
PDF
Format - 465kb
Abstract A pollen analytical study of New
Zealand honey provides a basis for identifying the origins of
a honey in terms of locality and floral source. The information
may be used to develop analytical standards for pollen, contributing
to quality control of a product offered for export or for the
home market. General principles outlined by the International
Commission for Bee Botany have been used as a guide, although
in practice these are considerably modified. Samples were processed
by acetolysis, and absolute pollen counts were obtained by spiking
with a known number of Lycopodium spores. Most New Zealand honey
falls within the "normal" category (20 000-100 000 pollen grains
in a standard 10 g sample). Clover honey is in this category.
Thyme honey with a pollen content less than 20 000 grains per
10 g sample, and manuka honey where the pollen content exceeds
100 000 grains, are examples of "under-represented" and "over
represented" categories respectively. The analyses confirm the
importance of white clover to apiarists, they provide details
of characteristic pollen spectra for New Zealand honey, and draw
attention to difficulties associated with assessing honey type
by organoleptic criteria. Standards developed for New Zealand
honey by pollen analysis should be flexible enough to accommodate
changes as more data becomes available.
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Airborne's
Standard Sampling System
PDF Version 83kb
his is
the Airborne Standard for preparing, documenting and storing
representative samples of honey for sale.
Taking Samples
Samples should be prepared for each BATCH as follows :
As drums are filled from the extraction holding tank;
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- For
batches that are 5 drums or less, a sample should be
taken every drum.
- For
batches that are greater than 5 drums - a sample should
be taken every second drum.
- At
the end of the tank mix these together to create one
total sample of the entire batch.
- This
total sample created from the batch should be approx
2 kilos.
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From this several samples of this batch can be supplied, should
there be a requirement to do so, while still keeping some in reserve.
This remaining sample must be kept for at least 9 months after
the honey has been sold.
Sample Containers
The producer should keep the master sample in an airtight container
to eliminate moisture being absorbed by the honey. The sample
should also be stored in the dark in a cool (<20°C) place.
There are a number of good containers for sending samples via
the post. Nexus Packaging supply Polyjars of 150gm, 250gm and
500gm sizes with good sealing caps. We supply a 50gm (30 ml) polycarbonate
container. These are indestructible. Price of these is approx
45 cents ea.
Batch Numbers
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- Batch
numbers identify the batch that each sample and drum
came from.
- Every
sample and drum must have a batch number on it.
- Batch
numbers should be made up with two parts. One part should
identify the batch and the other should identify the
drum in the batch.
- In
a batch of 5 drums the first drum could be marked A1,
the second drum marked A2, the third A3
and so on up to A5
- The
sample should be marked A1-5 in this case. This
way it is clear from the batch number that the batch
represents 5 drums.
- If
you like you can add other figures to the first part
of the batch number for your own reference e.g. HDA
to remind you that this is "Honey Dew" batch
"A". Do not get too complicated though.
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Marking Samples
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- All
sample containers must be marked with the batch number
and producer's name on the container, not the
lid (lids have a habit of getting swapped from one container
to another).
- We
can supply a standard label for marking samples with.
It should be used if possible.
- Use
a permanent (spirit based), black felt tipped pen. E.g.
a "Sanford Sharpie Extra Fine Point Permanent Marker".
These do not fade and will write on most surfaces
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