organic bees!

[csa]

right. i have a question. i assume you get organic honey from organic bees? and presumably to be certified organic, one must ensure that the bees only feed on organic vegetation? so, does that mean organic bees are not free range bees and hence, organic honey is not free range? horror

LOL

ive never thought about that one before!

it's one of those things that have been bugging me for awhile. yes, yes, i know - i must have a sad life!

Honey Bees fly for a radius of up to 3 miles. Can't really imagine how anyone can stop them going where they please. Have you ever seen a bee fence!

I'm not sure how honey qualifies for organic status. It must mean that the feed they are given (sugar solution in aumtumn), and any treatments for varoa etc are organic. I simply cannot imagine any way you can ensure they only feed off organic plants though.

unless their behives are i the middle of huge organic farms?

that's what i think too so was wondering if anyone else thought organic honey was a rip-off.

They could be in organic farms (organic farms need pollination, too) or in wild areas, where nobody's using fertilizer etc?

lol @ the thought am waiting for the person who comes on and can enlighten us to the rules about organic honey

actually been really sad and have done a google on this and NannyL is kind of right.
taken from this website - First, in order to be truly organic, the beehives must be placed in isolated areas miles from the dense population, industry, traffic congestion, and farm fields treated with chemicals and landfills. Second, a bee's flying range is determined by their natural instinct which tells them to stay within their natural four mile range from the hive location. When they fly out of this range, all sense of direction is lost.

ah, it now becomes clearer. aren't you glad you stayed on this thread

or even this website ?

Quite interesting really. With most animals/ products the land they are reared on as well as the food they eat has to be certified organic. Along with various other rules about numbers, conditions, medicines etc.

If its just that bees have to be kept in an isolated place then we could have sold our honey as organic (we've lost our bees now though).

The other issue is treatments. The treatments for varoa can be pretty nasty. We tried thymol a more natural remedy and that was pretty chemical too.

I wouldn't pay more for organic honey anyway because most honey is created using wild plants, etc. However lots of honey you buy in supermarkets etc is blended honey where it comes from lots of different sources and often from overseas. I know in the states they transport bees quite a lot for pollination so bees are constantly moved around and transported (they have to be sealed in the hives for this) plus they will be taken to huge agricultural farms which probably rely heavily on chemicals.

If you want genuine organic honey then I would buy from a local bee keeper and certainly buy single source rather than commercial blended honey. It tastes tons better too. Can be interesting to compare different honeys as they do taste different depending where most of the pollen has come from.

that's interesting katherine. i always mean to buy local honey but am always tempted away by those squeezy bottle ones as it is easier for ds1 to manage than scooping it out of a bottle. but does local honey equal not commercially blended? i read somewhere that the colour of the honey is determined by what the bees feed on - i.e. if they feed on dark stuff like blackcurrants, etc., the honey is darker. is that true?

If you buy local honey then it is most unlikely to have been blended, i.e. mixed with honey from elsewhere. Small beekeepers just jar it up and sell it. Of course I suppose if "local" was from a big farming area then the bees will have fed from crops which may have been sprayed etc but if its quite rough country - i.e. sheep, moorlands etc then it will be natural plants with nothing on "em.

There is also creamed honey which should not be confused with blended. Blended means mixed - like cheap wine with grapes from all over - creamed means it has been beaten like whisking eggs to give it a more even texture. This honey is opaque rather than clear.

The colour and flavour of the honey is affected by what was the bees main source of food. Heather honey has a strong taste and is very thick - oiften sold in slabs rather than jars. Rapeseed (those fields of yellow) tends to produce the least tasty. If you look at the legs of hoenybees (as I'm sure you all do ) then you can see the little sacks on their legs bulging with pollen and it will vary a lot in colour depending on what is around. Its all fascinating stuff. Wish we could get some more bees.