Levels of heavy metals in a multifloral Saudi honey

Abdulqader Y Bazeyad; Ali S Al-Sarar; Ahmed I Rushdi; Ashraf S Hassanin; Yasser Abobakr

doi:10.1007/s11356-018-3909-7

Levels of heavy metals in a multifloral Saudi honey

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2019 Feb;26(4):3946-3953. doi: 10.1007/s11356-018-3909-7. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Authors

Abdulqader Y Bazeyad¹, Ali S Al-Sarar¹, Ahmed I Rushdi^{2

3}, Ashraf S Hassanin⁴, Yasser Abobakr^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
² ETAL Consulting and Services, 2951 SE Midvale Dr, Corvallis, OR, 97333, USA.
³ College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA.
⁴ Central Laboratory of Residue Analysis of Pesticides and Heavy Metals in Food (QCAP), Agricultural Research Center, 7 Nadi Elsaid Street, Dokki, Giza, 12311, Egypt.
⁵ Department of Plant Protection, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. yawadallah1@ksu.edu.sa.
⁶ Plant Protection Research Institute, Sabahia Research Station, Agricultural Research Center, Sabahia, Baccous, P.O. Box 21616, Alexandria, Egypt. yawadallah1@ksu.edu.sa.

PMID: 30547337
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-3909-7

Abstract

The presence of chemical pollutants, especially heavy metals, affects the quality of honey. The objective of this study was to determine the levels of eight heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in honey samples from Al-Baha region in Saudi Arabia, using inductively coupled plasma with optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). The highest concentration was found for Zn (1707.93 μg kg^-1), while the lowest was found for Co (3.04 μg kg^-1). Cluster analysis and principal component analysis showed that two groups are recognized indicating two different metal sources. The first group includes only Zn and the second group includes the rest of the metals. In view of the recommended and established heavy metal intakes for humans, consumption of Saudi honey from Al-Baha should not be deemed a matter of concern for human health.

Keywords: Cluster analysis; Heavy metals; Honey; ICP-OES; Saudi Arabia.

MeSH terms

Environmental Monitoring
Environmental Pollutants / analysis
Food Analysis / methods
Food Contamination / analysis*
Honey / analysis*
Metals, Heavy / analysis*
Saudi Arabia
Spectrum Analysis / methods

Substances

Environmental Pollutants
Metals, Heavy