Today's Edition
SARA ALZAABI (ABU DHABI)
M42, in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (ADQCC), have inaugurated the UAE’s inaugural fully equipped honey testing laboratory at the Central Testing Laboratory (CTL).
The Honey Quality Laboratory, supported by M42’s Environmental Sciences team, assures the quality, safety, and authenticity of honey products by evaluating various factors, such as sugar content, moisture levels, and acidity, ensuring that the products are free of additives and contaminants.
The lab also has the ability to identify and verify the distinct characteristics of different types of honey, including the popular Abu Dhabi Sidr honey.
The laboratory uses an AI-powered Lab Information Management System (LIMS) to enhance honey quality testing, which ensures the accuracy of the testing process.
In response to questions about the laboratory’s expected ipact, H.E Engineer Abdulla Al Muaini, Executive Director of the CTL at ADQCC, said: “Honey holds significant cultural and economic value in the UAE, similar to the importance of dates. By establishing this advanced testing facility with M42, we aim to support local producers and enhance the market positioning of Abu Dhabi honey on a global scale.
Our efforts contribute to the broader goals of the ADQCC in maintaining high quality and conformity standards. This initiative ensures that local and international standards are met, fostering trust and confidence among consumers and stakeholders.”
Albarah Elkhani, Senior Vice President of Operations at M42 remarked: “M42’s partnership with the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council is an example of how public-private partnerships are accelerating digital transformation and AI adoption in the UAE. By leveraging advanced technology and scalable capabilities, we are not only contributing to the local economy and national goals, but we are also setting a benchmark for global applicability.”
Dr. Wael Elamin, Medical Director, Environmental Sciences at M42, noted that the partnership with ADQCC enhances testing capabilities and optimises operations using AI solutions, noting that the honey testing service makes the newly inaugurated lab the first and only in the region with such comprehensive capabilities.
Abdullah Siddiqui, Manager of the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Laboratory at ADQCC, told Aletihad that AI can assist in analysis and testing, particularly in identifying unfit honey.
“It is the first of its kind here in the UAE. Why do we believe this is an important aspect of delivering and supporting the use of technology? Because we feel that there is a lot of information that could be related to bees, honey production, and biodiversity. So we invested our time and effort with our scientists and our strategic partners in looking at best-in-class technology,” Siddiqui said.
Explaining the advanced technology implemented in honey assessment, Siddiqui said: “We looked at HPLCs, we looked at mass spectrometry-very advanced scientific technologies that can detect parts per million. These technologies break down the honey into very small components to detect the smallest amounts of contamination or adulterants and check the purity of the sample itself.”
The laboratory then applies AI tools to analyse the data points collected at the parts per million level, which help identify any factors that could be impacting the composition of the honey, including any potential contaminates or opportunities to improve the purity. These insights then help the scientists in the lab as well as local honey producers and bee keepers understand the tiny, interrelated components that comprise the honey ecosystem, he added.
According to Albarah Elkhani, Senior Vice President of Operations at M42, sustainability, and particularly the adaptability and preservation of honeybees is a key focus of the project’s overall scope, as 90% of food is produced through bee pollination.
Addressing the sustainability aspect, Siddiqui noted: “We are not only emphasising honey analysis, but we are also analysing honeybees. We have a full system available to analyse honeybees.”
The laboratory’s advanced technology offers unique methods for testing honeybee adulteration, authentication, and quality confirmation, he added, noting that advanced equipment is used for hormone, steroid, and veterinary drug analysis, as well as pollen analysis, microbiological analysis, and toxic heavy metal analysis.
“We have set up a system to analyse not only honey, but also to conduct testing for honeybees and honeybee hives. This system is available to keep the product sustainable in the market,” he added.
