Characterization of Anatolian honeys based on minerals, bioactive components and principal component analysis

• Biochemical properties of honey depend its unifloral characters.
• B2 vitamin and mineral content can be evaluated as biomarkers of unifloral honeys.
• Fe and B2 vitamin are distinguishing indicators for heather honeys.
• Oak and chestnut honeys show substantial antioxidant effects.
• Pine and oak are honeydew honeys have variable bioactive properties.

Our aim is the characterization of Anatolian monofloral and honeydew honeys according to their mineral, vitamin B2, total phenolic contents and antioxidant activities. Five main elements (Ca, K, Fe, Cu, and Mn) were determined in 20 honey samples by inductively coupled plasma – optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The vitamin B2 contents of honey samples were determined by the capillary electrophoresis method coupled with a sensitive laser induced fluorescence (LIF) detector. The total phenolic contents were analyzed with Folin–Ciocalteu's method. Two comparative antioxidant assays, namely cupric reducing antioxidant capacity assay (CUPRAC) and ABTS radical scavenging assay, were applied to detect the antioxidant power of honeys. Heather honeys were distinguished from others with significantly high vitamin B2 and iron contents. Considerably higher antioxidant capacities and Mn contents were observed for oak and chestnut honeys. Principal components analysis was applied to the analysis result in order to classify the honeys from different botanical origins.