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Author Topic: Honey consumer's needs  (Read 2102 times)

Offline ILikeHoney

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Honey consumer's needs
« on: July 22, 2018, 03:58:40 am »
What do people who buy honey want? What motivates them to choose one honey product, over another?

People have a lot of concerns over the quality of honey products. They might be concerned that it's been pasteurised, which would reduce it's taste, nutritional content and some believe it's medicinal properties also. They might concerned it's been adulterated, one way or another.

People also seem to want to buy local honey, whether that be to support their local beekeepers, or simply because they want honey that contains local pollen.

What other needs and wants do consumers have, other than cost factors?

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #1 on: July 22, 2018, 06:15:53 am »
Welcome to Beemaster.
As you mentioned, those that know the value of real honey want it un treated. No high filtering and no heat above 104f.
Jim
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline G3farms

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #2 on: July 22, 2018, 09:35:14 am »
I also find that there is two types of honey buyers.........

The ones who know what it is and use it everyday, they are wanting it unfiltered, unheated and in bulk.

The ones who do not really know what honey is besides a sweet gooey substance and they like it in a fancy little jar.
those hot bees will have you steppin and a fetchin like your heads on fire and your keister is a catchin!!!

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Offline Bush_84

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #3 on: July 22, 2018, 09:25:06 pm »
I also find that there is two types of honey buyers.........

The ones who know what it is and use it everyday, they are wanting it unfiltered, unheated and in bulk.

The ones who do not really know what honey is besides a sweet gooey substance and they like it in a fancy little jar.

The ones who want the fancy jar also want the fancy titles on their honey.
Keeping bees since 2011.

Also please excuse the typos.  My iPad autocorrect can be brutal.

Offline Hops Brewster

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #4 on: July 23, 2018, 12:23:24 pm »
When you find the answer to that question, please let us know.

or...
Don't you think that answer will vary from person to person and locale to locale and honey to honey?
Winter is coming.

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Van, Arkansas, USA

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #5 on: July 23, 2018, 03:00:44 pm »
I purchase honey every year: acacia and Tupelo.

I demand non heated: for acacia I only buy WHITE or color 10 which is the same and 16.2 % moisture,,, 5 gallons.  For Tupelo, I want to see percentage 75 and above, I?ll purchase 20 pounds.  I want moisture less than 17%.

Then I have my own honey inwhich I take only a small amount, that is 75 pounds from 2 out of 22 hives.  Of course all this honey is raw, non heated, rough filtered to remove wax particles.

As Hops said Honey buyers are unique: my prerequisites are different than most.  Very few even know what color scales 10 Thur 90 are.  I like lite color honey, 30 or less: thirty would be like common clover Honey.
Blessings

Offline beepro

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #6 on: August 07, 2018, 07:09:48 pm »
As a beekeeper and consumer, I like my honey to be organic and uncontaminated by any bee disease. 
I've recently found a source of organic honey online for $5 buck a pound.  Bought some to test it first.   I'm not sure if it is
free of bee disease though.   Feeding some to my bees will tell.   Hope it is not organic AFB honey.

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #7 on: August 08, 2018, 01:02:41 am »
Beepro,
I would never feed my bees honey that I bought. If it is coming from a long time commercial beekeeper, the chances of it being contaminated with AFB are real high. If it is mixed in with honey from hundreds of hives, the chances of getting AFB go way up.
Jim
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Van, Arkansas, USA

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #8 on: August 08, 2018, 10:15:39 am »
Good advice Jim, you should have capitalized and bold print the word {NEVER.}

Offline Dallasbeek

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #9 on: August 08, 2018, 12:54:45 pm »
As a beekeeper and consumer, I like my honey to be organic and uncontaminated by any bee disease. 
I've recently found a source of organic honey online for $5 buck a pound.  Bought some to test it first.   I'm not sure if it is
free of bee disease though.   Feeding some to my bees will tell.   Hope it is not organic AFB honey.

How can they show honey is organic when the bees are free to fly several miles in any direction to gather nectar?
"Liberty lives in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no laws, no court can save it." - Judge Learned Hand, 1944

Offline ed/La.

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #10 on: August 08, 2018, 02:40:28 pm »
Video is long. Should give some marketing ideas. https://youtu.be/o3QA5zj3jb8

Offline Bushpilot

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #11 on: August 08, 2018, 03:03:57 pm »
Check the current issue of Bee Culture, it talks about this. I think it is Kim's column IIRC.

Offline beepro

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #12 on: August 08, 2018, 07:43:22 pm »
I'm trying to make some AFB resistant queens using the grafting method.  So if any of my
bees show signs of AFB infection then it would not be my entire bee yard.   I will test the
honey one jar at a time feeding to my CB nuc hive.

It is impossible to know for sure that this honey is organic.  To be label as organic honey I can
call the seller up to ask questions.   Also I'm sure the honey producer must have an organic certificate in
order to sell it as organic honey.   

Organic label may not eliminate the bee diseases entirely.  This is another one of my little bee experiment to raise some
AFB resistant queens or to find out whether or not this company's organic honey is free of any bee disease.  In any case I will let
the company know that their honey is either tainted or continue using them.     In 2 weeks we shall see!

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #13 on: August 08, 2018, 08:40:18 pm »
Beepro,
AFB can take up to 3 years to show up after being introduced into a hive. A friend of mines daughter bought a couple of hives from a commercial Beek. He did not tell her that she had to keep treating her hives with Terra-myosin. Three years later the inspector burned all of her hives due to AFB.
Jim
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

Offline beepro

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Re: Honey consumer's needs
« Reply #14 on: August 11, 2018, 02:36:23 am »
In that case, Jim, I rather be on the safe side.  Since we are in a summer dearth now, I will only feed
them the patty subs and sugar bricks this time.  The organic honey I will save it for me.   For this little
experiment to work, I'll have to take this nuc hive to the open field away from my home apiary.  Once feeding
starts I'll have to keep on feeding until the mini Autumn flow arrives again.   

 

anything