Melissopalynology Analysis of Malaysian Gelam Honey

Abstract

Gelam honey of Melaleuca sp. is one of the wild types of honey produced by Apis dorsata bees. Nowadays, honey adulteration is rampant as most markets offer adulterated brown sugar-based honey with detrimental effects on blood sugar levels. The difficulty in identifying the floral category causes the floral origin of the honey to be unknown. Melissopalynology is a way to curb adulteration and inaccurate labelling of honey that is happening in the honey production industry. In this study, the pH, moisture content and colour intensity of Malaysian Gelam honey were determined, together with morphology, pollen types and count present in Gelam honey.