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Beeswax quality research results are in
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Research at MANS shows that beeswax quality requires assessment of both functional properties and chemical residues. Laboratory analyses detected residues in 121 of 150 samples.
Research completed by a team associated with the International Academy of Applied Sciences in Łomża confirms that beeswax quality should be assessed in terms of both functional properties and chemical residues.
Laboratory analyses covered 150 wax samples. Residues of at least one active substance were detected in 121 samples, representing 80.7% of the material tested. A total of 10 different substances were identified.
The most frequently detected substances were: - piperonyl butoxide: 76 samples; - coumaphos: 70 samples; - tau-fluvalinate: 31 samples.
The research also revealed the presence of multiple residues. Some samples contained several active substances simultaneously; one sample contained as many as six different compounds.
In the WaxoNext assessment: ✅ 17 samples were classified as good-quality wax; ⚠️ 38 as wax of uncertain quality; ❗ 104 as wax whose properties differed substantially from the reference wax.
An important finding was that WaxoNext results were not directly associated with either the number of substances detected or their total concentrations. The methods therefore provide information about different aspects of quality: chromatographic analyses identify the chemical residue burden, while WaxoNext assesses how the wax’s functional properties differ from those of a natural reference.
The findings confirm the need to: - regularly check wax and beeswax foundation; - limit the uncontrolled circulation of raw material; - document the origin of wax; - combine rapid screening with laboratory analyses.
The results were published in the Scientific Journals of the International Academy of Applied Sciences in Łomża, www.ojs.mans.edu.pl, in the article “Multidimensional Assessment of Beeswax Quality Using Analysis of Veterinary Medicine and Plant Protection Product Residues and WaxoNext Screening of Wax Properties”.
