Abstract:In recent years,the demand for brown sugar as a functional food has been continuously increasing.However,the quality of brown sugar in the market varies greatly,and there is a lack of scientific methods for identification and evaluation to ensure its quality.In this study,55 batches of brown sugar from five major production areas in China（Guangxi,Guangdong,Yunnan,Guizhou and Hong Kong）were selected as research objects. A method for tracing the origin of brown sugar was established by using high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector（HPLC-DAD）fingerprint and combining common pattern method,similarity evaluation method and chemometrics method. This study revealed that brown sugar from different origins had both unique and common HPLC-DAD fingerprints. The unique HPLC-DAD fingerprint patterns displayed distinct regional characteristics in the retention time of specific peaks,closely associated with the geographical origin.A total of 9 common peaks were identified in the common fingerprints obtained from diverse origins,and the similarity of the fingerprint ranged from 0.473 to 0.915. Although common peaks were present,there were obvious differences in the peak areas（e.g.,the average relative peak area of the S2 common peak in Guangdong,Guangxi,Yunnan,Guizhou and Hong Kong were 47.592%,26.873%,814.853%,8.683%,and 3.111%,respectively）. The clustering heatmap of the peak areas of the common peaks showed distinct differences among samples from different regions.Furthermore,principal component analysis of the common peak areas revealed that the first three principal components contributed 59.9%,17.1% and 11.6%,respectively,to the distinction of geographical origins,with a cumulative contribution rate of 88.6%.It can be used as a characteristic index to identify the origin of brown sugar.