*3.5. Organic Acids of Bee Pollen*

In this study the presence of gluconic acids, formic acid, lactic acid, acetic acid, succinic acid, propionic acid and butyric acid was investigated, and the results are presented in Table 3. As can be observed from the Table 3, the major organic acid was gluconic acid, followed by lactic acid, acetic acid and propionic acid. Formic acid, succinic acid and butyric acid were not present in any of the samples. Similar levels from gluconic acid, lactic acid and acetic acid were reported by Kalaycıoglu et al. [45] in the case of bee pollen from Turkey. The lactic acid presented in the bee pollen is probably the result of the fermentation process during the fermentation of carbohydrates using lactic acid bacteria present in the bees' stomach [46]. The organic acids present preservation potential from foods and are promoted as a new generation instead of antibiotics, so the bee pollen can be considered a potential preservation agent [45,46]. The absence of formic acid and butyric acid represents a good indicator that the bee pollen is not contaminated with undesired microorganisms.



\*\*—*p* < 0.01, \*\*\*—*p* < 0.001.
