Mineral and physical-chemical composition of bee pollen collected in the Republic of Moldova

Abstract

The physico-chemical composition and techno-functional properties of bee pollen collected from three apiaries in the south of the Republic of Moldova, fruit of the year 2023, were evaluated.

The mineral content shows that there are no significant differences in terms of the total mineral content per sample according to of the beehive. However, the mineral content varied depending on the origin of the bee pollen. The following general trend was observed in terms of mineral content in higher concentration in bee pollen as follows: K (2.3–4.9 g/kg) > P (2.1–3.9 g/kg) > Ca (0.48–2.3 g/kg) > Na (0.35–1.4 g/kg) > Mg (79– 601 mg/kg). At the same time, the bee pollen analyzed contained 58.24–79.17% carbohydrates, 9.98–29.15% proteins, 1.11–5.18% lipids, and 1.18–3.21% ash. The analyzed bee pollen showed low protein solubility (2.79–25.90 g/100 g), high carbohydrate solubility (31.2–75 g/100 g), good emulsifying properties (emulsion stability index of varied between 18.4 and 47.1 min and emulsion activity index varied between 11.04 and 24.52 m2/g), non-foaming properties, poor water absorption capacity (0.92–2.25 g/ g) and excellent oil absorption capacity (1.11–3.61 g/g). Protein solubility was positively correlated with carbohydrate content (r = 0.75, p < 0.05) but negatively with ash and lipid content (r = -0.38, r = -0.47, respectively p < 0.05). Total protein content and lipid content showed a positive relationship with carbohydrate solubility (r = 0.38, r = 0.44, p < 0.05, respectively). Emulsion stability was also positively correlated with protein solubility (r = 0.48, p < 0.05), while emulsion activity was negatively correlated with this parameter (r = -0.33, p < 0.05) . Water and oil absorption capacity did not reveal important correlations with other parameters investigated in bee pollen. The obtained results encourage the use of bee pollen as useful applications, as a food ingredient in a variety of food products.