Variations of Total Phenolic Content in Honey Samples Caused by Different Calibration Lines

In the review of total phenolic contents (TPCs) of acacia, lime, and chestnut honey samples from several literature sources, large differences were noticed, which cannot be attributed only to seasonal or geographical variations. The dependence of TPC on the process of construction of the calibration line is illustrated in the measurement of acacia, lime, and chestnut honey types from Croatia and neighbouring countries (Serbia, Italy, and Hungary). TPCs are determined for 39 uni-floral honey samples by four calibration lines and four TPC values are obtained for each honey sample. Obtained results are compared mutually, as well as with the literature results for honey samples of the same type. For each honey type, the average of all determined TPCs determined in this study is in the middle of literature values. The average TPC values for chestnut honey samples were found to be 1.5 and 3 times higher than those for lime and acacia, respectively. The effects of two factors regularly considered in the determination of calibration lines are analyzed: (1) the concentration range of the standard chemical and (2) whether the calibration line is drawn through the origin, or not. The final results strongly depend on these two factors that should be considered in future TPC estimations. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License