Comparison of the Volatile Composition in Thyme Honeys from Several Origins in Greece

J. Agric. Food Chem, 55 (20), 8152–8157

Abstract: Thyme honey is the most appreciated unifloral Greek honey in Greece as well as around the world. In an effort to investigate the headspace composition of this type of honey, 28 samples were analyzed by means of solid-phase microextraction coupled to a gas chromatography–mass spectrometry system.

The botanical origin of the samples was ascertained by pollen analysis, and samples displayed relative frequencies of thyme pollen between 18 and 41%. A total of 62 compounds were isolated, and phenylacetaldehyde was the most abundant (32.9% of the total peak area). Possible botanical markers are 1-phenyl-2,3-butanedione (13.4%), 3-hydroxy-4-phenyl-2-butanone, 3-hydroxy-1-phenyl-2-butanone (14.7%), phenylacetonitrile (4.8%), and carvacrol (0.9%), since these compounds are found only in thyme honey…

Editor’s Note: Thyme honey is used for wound treatment by Professor Bernard Descottes at Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Limoges in France.

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