Processing of honey using polymeric microfiltration and ultrafiltration membranes

Membrane-processed honey samples for pollen characterization with health benefits

Better processing techniques must be utilized widely due to the rising demand for honey. The most common honey processing techniques are applied to melissopalynomorphs to check the quality and quantity of valuable honey using microporous ultrafiltration membranes. It is essential to have the ability to selectively filter out sugars from honey using ultrafiltration. This study authenticated 24 honey samples using membrane reactors ultrafiltration protocol to describe the pollen spectrum of dominant vegetation. The purpose of this study was also to explore nutritional benefits as well as the active phytochemical constituents of honey samples. Honey samples were collected and labeled Acacia, Eucalyptus, and Ziziphus species based on plant resources provided by local beekeepers. A variety of honeybee flora was collected around the apiaries between 2020 and 2021. Honey analysis revealed that the pollen extraction of 24 bee foraging species belonging to 14 families. The honey membrane technology verified the identities of honey and nectar sources. Also, pollen identified using honey ultrafiltration membranes revealed dominant resources: Acacia spp. (69%), Eucalyptus spp. (52%) and Ziziphus spp. Honey filtration using a membrane technology classified 14 samples as unifloral, represented by six dominant pollen types. The absolute pollen count in the honey sample revealed that 58.33% (n = 14) belong to Maurizio's class I. Scanning ultrasculpturing showed diverse exine patterns: reticulate, psilate, scabrate-verrucate, scabrate-gemmate, granulate, perforate, microechinate, microreticulate, and regulate to fossulate for correct identification of honey pollen types. Honey ultrafiltration should be utilized to validate the botanical sources of honey and trace their biogeographic authenticity. Thus, it is imperative to look at the alternative useful method to identify the botanical origin of filtered honey. It is critical to separate honey from adulteration by a standardized protocol. Membrane technology has yielded significant outcomes in the purification of honey.

Pollen, Physicochemical, and Mineral Analysis of Croatian Acacia Honey Samples: Applicability for Identification of Botanical and Geographical Origin

The aim of the study was to investigate health safety and quality of the Croatian acacia honey, the selected elements in the soil, and whether multivariate methods can provide identification of the origin of honey. The study included 200 acacia honey samples and 100 soil samples from East, Northwest Croatia, and Istria. The proportion of acacia in honey was determined by conducting pollen analysis. Water, free acids, electric conductivity, reducing sugars, saccharose, diastase, and HMF were determined. No significant differences were found using Kruskal-Wallis test regarding the physicochemical parameters (p=0.9190), the mineral content of honey (p=0.8955), or the mineral composition of the soil (p=0.8789). No significant correlation was found between the analyzed elements in honey and soil. Multivariate methods indicated that East Croatia honey samples have higher concentrations of water, HMF, and higher concentrations of measured elements, except for Al. Honey samples from Northwest Croatia are characterized by low concentrations of elements and a higher concentration of saccharose. The Istria samples are richer in reducing sugars, free acids, diastase, higher conductivity, higher content of the acacia pollen grains, and lower concentrations of most metals. Honey from Northwest Croatia and Istria shares the high concentration of Al in honey.

Membrane processing technology in the food industry: food processing, wastewater treatment, and effects on physical, microbiological, organoleptic, and nutritional properties of foods

Membrane processing technology (MPT) is increasingly used nowadays in a wide range of applications (demineralization, desalination, stabilization, separation, deacidification, reduction of microbial load, purification, etc.) in food industries. The most frequently applied techniques are electrodialysis (ED), reverse osmosis (RO), nanofiltration (NF), ultrafiltration (UF), and microfiltration (MF). Several membrane characteristics, such as pore size, flow properties, and the applied hydraulic pressure mainly determine membranes' potential uses. In this review paper the basic membrane techniques, their potential applications in a large number of fields and products towards the food industry, the main advantages and disadvantages of these methods, fouling phenomena as well as their effects on the organoleptic, qualitative, and nutritional value of foods are synoptically described. Some representative examples of traditional and modern membrane applications both in tabular and figural form are also provided.

Production of okara and soy protein concentrates using membrane technology

Microfiltration (MF) membranes with pore sizes of 200 and 450 nm and ultrafiltration (UF) membranes with molecular weight cut off of 50, 100, and 500 kDa were assessed for their ability to eliminate nonprotein substances from okara protein extract in a laboratory cross-flow membrane system. Both MF and UF improved the protein content of okara extract to a similar extent from approximately 68% to approximately 81% owing to the presence of protein in the feed leading to the formation of dynamic layer controlling the performance rather than the actual pore size of membranes. Although normalized flux in MF-450 (117 LMH/MPa) was close to UF-500 (118 LMH/MPa), the latter was selected based on higher average flux (47 LMH) offering the advantage of reduced processing time. Membrane processing of soy extract improved the protein content from 62% to 85% much closer to the target value. However, the final protein content in okara (approximately 80%) did not reach the target value (90%) owing to the greater presence of soluble fibers that were retained by the membrane. Solubility curve of membrane okara protein concentrate (MOPC) showed lower solubility than soy protein concentrate and a commercial isolate in the entire pH range. However, water absorption and fat-binding capacities of MOPC were either superior or comparable while emulsifying properties were in accordance with its solubility. The results of this study showed that okara protein concentrate (80%) could be produced using membrane technology without loss of any true proteins, thus offering value addition to okara, hitherto underutilized. Practical Application: Okara, a byproduct obtained during processing soybean for soymilk, is either underutilized or unutilized in spite of the fact that its protein quality is as good as that of soy milk and tofu. Membrane-processed protein products have been shown to possess superior functional properties compared to conventionally produced protein products. However, the potential of membrane technology has not been exploited for the recovery of okara protein. Our study showed that protein content of okara extract could be improved from approximately 68% to approximately 81% without losing any true proteins in the process.

Chemical composition, characterization, and differentiation of honey botanical and geographical origins

Botanical and biographical origins of honey are an important issue in food quality and safety. This chapter focuses on use of chemical components to determine botanical and geographical origins of honey. The botanical and geographical origins of the nectar are related with the chemical composition of honey. Honey can originate from single and multiplant species. In general, the prices of honey from single plant species are much higher than those of common polyfloral honey because of consumer preferences. Single and multiple chemicals and components can well indicate the botanical and geographical origins of the honey. Marker chemicals and components include flavonoids, pollen, aroma compounds, oligosaccharides, trace elements, amino acids, and proteins. If multiple chemicals are used as markers, patterns of the chemicals are often used to detect the botanical and geographical origins of honey. Modern statistical software in combination with advanced analytical instrumentation provides high potential for the differentiation of the botanical and geographical origins of the honey.

Separation Strategies for Processing of Dilute Liquid Streams

Processing of dilute liquid streams in the industries like food, agro-, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, environment, and so forth needs special strategy for the separation and purification of the desired product and for environment friendly disposal of the waste stream. The separation strategy adopted to achieve the goal is extremely important from economic as well as from environmental point of view. In the present paper we have reviewed the various aspects of some selected universal separation strategies such as adsorption, membrane separation, electrophoresis, chromatographic separation, and electroosmosis that are exercised for processing of dilute liquid streams.

Characterization of honey amylase

The major alpha-amylase in honey was characterized. The optimum pH range and temperature were determined for the enzyme as 4.6 to 5.3 and 55 degrees C, respectively. The enzyme was stable at pH values from 7 to 8. The half-lives of the purified enzyme at different temperatures were determined. The activation energy for heat inactivation of honey amylase was 114.6 kJ/mol. The enzyme exhibited Michaelis-Menten kinetics with soluble starch and gave KM and Vmax values of 0.72 mg/mL and 0.018 units/mL, respectively. The enzyme was inhibited by CuCl (34.3%), MgCl2 (22.4%), and HgCl2 (13.4%), while CaCl2, MnCl2, and ZnSO4 did not have any effect. Starch had a protective effect on thermal stability of honey amylase. Therefore, it might be critical to process or control the amylase in honey before incorporation into starch-containing foods to aid in the preservation of starch functionality. One step could involve heat treating honey with other ingredients, especially those that dilute and acidify the honey environment.