# Tiered Honey Market/Quality Assurance



## BWrangler (Aug 14, 2002)

Hi Guys,

I've just listened to a video tape provided by Deknow. of M. Frazier's March 8th presentation.

http://www.beeuntoothers.com/

During the question/answers at the end of the tape, she mentions that pollen/honey samples were found that were contaminated with Aldicar. They were contaminated at levels that impact human health which required the EPA to be notified. The EPA has now added honey to it's list of agriculture products monitored for contamination.

I think it's way past time for beekeepers to get their heads out of the chemical bag. It's bad enough to still be putting it in hives. And now, it maybe just as important to make sure your bees don't bring it in themselves.

That means a beekeeper will need to know more about the pesticide environment the bees are in. If you listen to that tape, you'll know what most beekeepers have known for some time, that those bees are little electro statically charged environmental samplers. And they bring everything, especially concentrated by plants, and present in the environment back to the hive, where they concentrate it.

Ultimately, a voluntary honey quality assurance program may become a mandatory one if honey is to maintain it's image with the health conscious market.

Or maybe a tiered honey market will emerge with product quality determined by product testing. On the bottom rung will be "Almost Honey". Next "Almost Real Honey". Then maybe "Almost Really Pure Honey". Followed by "Almost Really Pure Organic Honey". :>)))

Or, if we beekeepers can't get our act together, maybe the health conscious will just forget honey and use "Almost Really Pure Organic Non-GMO Corn Syrup". 

Something to think about.

Regards
Dennis
Knowing that just because it comes out of the hive, doesn't mean its Pure.


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## BWrangler (Aug 14, 2002)

Hi Guys,

A follow up on my previous post.

What if the bees and the beekeeper live in the same contaminated environment? Not so pure honey wouldn't expose a honey consumer to anything they aren't already eating, drinking, breathing. So, it might not be so bad. Right?

I look at it another way. If the bees are bringing back stuff that makes our hive products not so pure. And we are living in the same contamination. Then bee health and product quality are the least of our worries. We've got bigger problems with our own personal health and public health, in general.

Regards
Dennis
Thinking the bees may be the canary in the coal mine. And that cough we hear might be our own.


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