Compositional and Safety Profiling of Honeys From Iraqi Kurdistan: A Multi-Indicator Analytical Approach.

This study covers critical aspects of honey quality and safety assessment, including elemental profile, heavy metal content, and sugar authenticity, which have not previously been reported across all four governorates of Kurdistan. Forty-nine samples were collected from Erbil, Duhok, Sulaymaniyah, and Halabja and analyzed for physicochemical and colorimetric properties; a subset of 20 samples, selected for their high bioactive compound content and antioxidant activity in preliminary screening, was further analyzed by HPLC sugar profiling and ICP-OES elemental analysis, with Manuka honey used as a reference standard. The concentration of proline in Halabja honeys, 191 ± 26 mg/kg (mean), exceeded the average Codex authenticity threshold, while lead in one Duhok sample (0.918 ± 0.004 mg/kg) exceeded the Codex limit, indicating localized contamination. The mineral range of Sulaymaniyah samples was wide (ash 0.10%-0.57 %), and Erbil samples had the highest viscosity (6,582 ± 9,428 mPa·s). Sugar profile results showed well-ripened samples (fructose/glucose ratio 1.1-1.7), though some samples showed possible adulteration. Potassium was the most abundant element (493.95-4,607.1 mg/kg). Te was consistently detected across all regions (0.374-0.632 mg/kg); however, as ICP-OES emission lines are susceptible to spectral interference, these values should be confirmed by independent analysis. The study establishes a baseline for the quality of regional honey, identifies contamination risks, and demonstrates that the majority of sampled honeys meet Codex physicochemical and safety standards, while identifying localized heavy metal contamination risks and emphasizing the need for botanical authentication. Findings from the HPLC and ICP-OES subset should be interpreted as descriptive of high-bioactivity honeys rather than representative of the full sample population.