Honey bee flora, handling practices and physico-chemical characteristics of honey produced in Angacha district, central Ethiopia

Abstract This study was conducted to assess honey bee flora, handling practices and physicochemical characteristics of honey produced in Angacha district of Ethiopia. A total of 327 households were randomly selected to gather information on bee flora and honey handling assessment. Honey samples were drawn from the two agroecological zones (highland and midland), hive types (traditional and modern) and local market for physico-chemical analysis. In the district, 52% of respondents practiced honey straining, while the remaining did not, mainly due to a lack of straining materials and limited awareness. Plastic buckets were identified as the primary storage containers for honey. A total of twenty tree, shrub, and annual species were identified as potential honeybee plants through field observations and semi-structured interviews with local beekeepers and farmers. Comparison of physico-chemical values of honey samples collected from the two agroecological zones showed no significant ( p < 0.05) differences in moisture contents, ash, electrical conductivity, sucrose, fructose and free acidity levels of honey. Honey samples obtained from local markets showed significantly different ( p < 0.05) levels of ash, fructose, Hydroxy-methylfurfural (HMF) and Pfund readings (mm) compared to those collected directly from hives (both traditional and modern). For successful export to international markets, the HMF content must be reduced to meet the acceptable limits set by international quality standards. Overall, the findings provide valuable insights into improving honey quality, postharvest handling, and market competitiveness of Ethiopian honey for both domestic and international trade.