Preliminary characterization of two important Honeys produced by Apis cerana and Apis dorsata from five Districts of Manipur, India

Honey, the natural sweet substance produced by honeybees is a valuable product with significant nutritional and medicinal importance. Our study evaluates the physicochemical parameters of honey produced by Apis cerana and Apis dorsata from five districts of Manipur: Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal, Bishnupur, and Kakching. The parameters included moisture content, pH, and specific gravity, following standard laboratory methods. The moisture content ranged between 13.9% and 20.9% for A. cerana and 15.5%-17.5% for A. dorsata. The pH values varied from 3.30-4.07 and 3.59-4.05, respectively, while specific gravity ranged from 1.25-1.41 and 1.34-1.40. These results show that, all samples are in line the Codex Alimentarius standards for high-quality honey, with small variations linked to floral and geographical influences. These findings establish a foundation for assessing the quality of regional honeys from Manipur.