# Need Opinions on Estimated Honey Prices



## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

Well, this year will be my first attempt to sell honey. I have bought the jars and currently working on a logo and labeling. I would like to ask everyone there opinion on the prices that I have estimated at for selling the honey. I do not really care about profit margin as for any hobby.. its for the fun of it. So here is what I have thought so far:

1.5 oz jar of honey for $1.75

2 oz jar of honey for $2.25

4 oz jar of honey for $3.25

I have learned that I should of gone with some bigger jars but I will have to apply that for next year as time is an issue.

any opinions?


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## carbide (Nov 21, 2004)

Good luck with your pricing schedule. In my area I'm lucky to get $3.25 for 16 oz. of honey in a plastic squeezable bottle.


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## iddee (Jun 21, 2005)

Chef
Honey varies in pricing from one area to another, so I won't try to set your prices. Just remember that some beekeepers aren't hobbyists. Be careful that you don't undercut the income of a family man trying to make a living, Your prices should be in line with the area you are in. Since I, like you, are a hobbyist, I try to keep my prices just a little above the "make a living beeks" in the area, in order to keep from taking food out of their mouths.


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## Gregg (Dec 22, 2003)

My only comment is that your quantities offered are incredibly small (to me anyway). Do you (or will you) have a customer base that will even bother buying only 4 oz. of honey at a time? Maybe it will work if you're located in a tourist-type area, I don't know. I do know it wouldn't work for me here. The smallest size I offer is a 1.5 lb. bear, and I sell a lot more 5 lb. jugs than bears, and even more 1 gallon pails.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Carbide, don't let the " I get 200 lbs a hive and my honey's so good people pay 7 bucks a pound for it" fool you. Right now the wholesale price for honey is the lowest it's been in about 8 yrs and it's not going to get better real soon. Check ABJ who publishs a monthly honey market report. Although not an exact science it gives a pretty good idea of what is going on in the real world. Compare that with what beekeeper you can talk to locally, figure out your costs and then set a fair price, you'll do fine.


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## Bob Harrison (Mar 15, 2005)

The wholesale price of honey has little to do with pricing unless you are selling in the drum/pail market.
All pricing done by the hobby/sideline beekeeper should be based on your production cost. The hobby beekeeper normally has the crop sold by September. Why not charge top dollar and sell all year?
Store prices should not set your price. I had a customer tell me at a farmers market:
"All these people are selling at store price or above think of all the products they could sell if they sold at half the price of the stores"

He did not understand how much more product has to be sold for each 10% you drop your price to make the same profit. Those selling to the public should keep the prices up as the pubilc will pay the higher price! Local honey sells.

As most know all honey is not the same. The top grade honey is in demand and the dark bakery grade sells slowly for a lower price in bulk. The low prices on bulk reflect many times the poorer grade. Having been in the business over forty years I can see why certain floral sources bring a lower price. The stuff has to be blended to be marketable. Honey which needs blended is never in demand. Honey which is water white is always in demand and will bring a premium price.


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## carbide (Nov 21, 2004)

Rob,

What you say about water white honey versus the darker honey is partially true in my experience and in my area. I price my honey the same regardless of color and I find that the lighter honey does indeed sell better in the local 24 hour store where I have it on the shelf. However, when I take my honey to any of the local markets and my customers have a chance to taste the different honeys I invariably sell more of the medium and dark amber honeys. In fact, this past weekend I sold over twice as much of the darker honey than I did of the light honey.

My personal belief is that since most buyers are used to buying the light honey in the supermarket, until they actually get a chance to taste some of the darker honeys, they just don't know what they're missing.


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## Bob Harrison (Mar 15, 2005)

You can always promote and sell darker single *source honey* in local markets.

What I refer to is packers. Let me explain. Many will not agree with packers methods but still I speak the truth about their methods from direct experience.

*If* you sell bulk honey in drums (like I do at times) you sell to packers which want a uniform product. Taste and color are very important to those people. 

All honey is not equal in flavor and color. Honey you see sold as say California sage or Midwest clover may be in fact mixed with some off tasting honey. Packers want each jar of *their* brand you buy to be similar in color and taste. Blending is the only way to do so.

Buckwheat and heartsease honey is fine as a single source honey but almost imposible to sell to packers not selling the honey as a specialty honey. Takes a lot of honey to change the flavor of buckwheat or lose the odor of heartsease.

Over half of the honey sold in U.S. stores today is from foreign sources and is blended. A common blend is two drums of water white excellent honey to eight drums of dark amber Argentine honey.

U.S. beekeepers could gear up and produce all the honey sold in the U.S. but with the low price of honey today not a wise move as many times the prices offered by packers is below the cost of production.

Maybe now when the list reads those bulk honey sales of the internet you will realize the price is directly effected by the color (pflund scale) and the flavor & odor. I have seen a honey produced in fall around Carthage ,Texas which was water white and had an excellent flavor but smelled like dirty socks. Not sure of what honey gave the odor.

I unloaded 60 drums out of South Dakota for a new packer friend a few weeks ago and he asked what I though of the honey. Extra light amber and good flavor but the distinct odor of heartsease (smartweed). Smartweed honey also has the problem of really getting dark after normal heating by a packer to filter and bottle. He called later to say I was right and the bears really stand out on the shelves due to the dark color. My friend is only in his late twenties and is learning but he needs to beware as one semi of off flavor honey can hurt sales. He took over an established market but still all packers know if a customer switches brands it will be a long while before they return (if ever).
Most the list is hobby but it never hurts to understand the way packers think.


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## Martha (Feb 14, 2004)

Hi,
Yeah, those are small sizes. I sell 6, 12 & 19 oz jars. I did sell a full gallon of raw unfiltered straight from the extractor last year.

It would depend on who you are selling to. Friends/family? Most of the people I sold to were my fellow homeschoolers, neighbors, family and church people. I would let them taste some, then they would remark on how different it tasted than what is in the full line grocery stores. My comb honey didn't sell as well. I guess people don't like chewing the wax.

I still have a few jars left and people return my canning jars (that I used first because that is what I had here) for refills.

If you have some people who want a larger amount, make a deal and get some mason jars. Ask them to bring a big jar from home.

I weigh my jar, turn the scale to zero then fill with honey to be sure of the weight of the jar. Then I know what to print on my label. Remind people honey is sold by weight not fluid ounces.

If I am not clear here - it's because I've not had coffee yet.

For people to taste - carry those little straight pretzel sticks or coffee stir sticks. Only thing w/ the pretzels pieces may come off and salt.

Oh Bob, thanks for the info on the big guys world.

Martha


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## Hillside (Jul 12, 2004)

So much of the price depends on your market. And your market can vary depending on your circumstances. 

If I had to sell all my honey through friends and family, I don't think I would even be able to get super market prices since I just don't know that many people who use a lot of honey.

But in my case I own a small greenhouse business and I can market my honey right along with the flowers. I can get a higher price and people seem to be in a mood to buy. But even at that, if I go more than about 10% above super market prices, I start hearing complaints about it being too expensive.


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## Bob Harrison (Mar 15, 2005)

There are always complaints about prices. If the customer has his wallet out or her purse open I talk about the quality of the product! The sale is going to happen. 

Some people are never happy with prices. Always want a cheaper price. Especially the ethnic market. In many foreign countries the seller thinks you are stupid if you do not try for a better price!

At a Mexico border town a couple years I waited for a U.S. tourist to buy a serapi for list price ( $65 U.S.). I bought the next serapi for a fourth the price he paid. I speak some Spanish and we both laughed about the *stupid* ******!

You do other beekeepers trying to make a profit an injustice by selling local honey below store prices!

Put a good quality jar of honey in their hands and they will be back whatever the price!


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

carbide adds:
My personal belief is that since most buyers are used to buying the light honey in the supermarket, until they actually get a chance to taste some of the darker honeys, they just don't know what they're missing.

tecumseh replies:
if I had a nickle for everyone who has gotten a taste of the 'real thing' and made the exact same statement I would still be keeping bees but I would be residing in maui. If you do not recognize this as the powerful marketing tool that it is, then you need to get some other family member to market you crop.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Rob, wholesale pricing has everthing to do with retail honey prices if you under stand market economics. Peole's perception of price is based on what they can buy something for in the commercial market place. This creates price resistance where anything is priced higer than the "common" market place. That is determined by the large packers with rows of honey in our supermarkets who do not produce but buy honey at wholesale prices. The wholesale price they pay relates directly to the retail price in the market place. This is best demonstrated by the sudden price surge during the recent embargo on chinese honey due to illegal antibiotics. The supply dried up, wholesale prices went from 65/lb to $1.30/lb in less than a year. Prices on the store shelf went from $3.00/lb to $5.00 a pound during the same period. Although most discerning consumers will pay more for quality it is not you or I who have control of what the consumer perceives as reasonable pricing, it is based on the commodities market and the wholesale price and how that effects retail. Retail pricing, due to market competetion, will rise and fall in direct relation to the wholesale price of any product being sold on the open market. Although I agree cost of production (and many other factors) is an important consideration it is misleading to make hobby beekeepers believe they can ignore the perceived "fair" market price and still succeed. I disagree with the "charge top dollar" concept. I watched this theory with maple syrup in the 1980's and 90's. People stopped buying it, Canada flooded our market and now you can buy a 1/2 gallon at Sam's club for $12.50. (virtually 1/2 the price we need to get as producers to get a reasonable return on production costs in small operations) Beekeepers need to look at the local market prices (wholesale and retail), figure reasonable production (as well as several other factors) costs, and then set a FAIR price. Now if you're expecting that the recent and continuing plunge in wholesale honey prices won't effect retail (and your) pricing I would suggest you're in for a big suprise. Am I missing something? People will pay at whatever price you set? Using your analogy customers who pay top dollar are "stupid Gringos", the smart people will haggle you down to the right price? That concept just doesn't wash IMO.


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## BubbaBob (Jan 18, 2005)

Wholesale pricing has absolutely NOTHING to do with retail prices of honey that you can, in ANY way, make "special".

Local. Raw. Unprocessed. Sourwood (or any regional varietal).

I don't know, and don't care, what honey sells for by the pound in tanker loads bound for Souix, and I don't care what Sue Bee sells for at the local Kroger. They have no effect on my sales because they cannot put "local, raw, and unprocessed" on their labels, and my customers have come to know, and are willing to pay for, the difference.

That's how you move 24,000 lbs in a year at an average of 4.75/lb.

BubbaBob


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## Bob Harrison (Mar 15, 2005)

Joel makes interesting points but none I agree with except if you sell in stores on the same shelf as the big boys. 

Even then if you try to sell your product at the prices they do you are headed for bankruptcy. 

I like BubbaBobs profit margin!You go BubbaBob! 
Beekeeping is to hard of work to give your honey away!

Sam's is a *umping ground*for large beekeepers & maple syrup sellers ( I am as serious as a heart attack!)

Honey blends which they would not sell to normal markets as would ruin their sales!

Those inferior blended grades of crap are ruining our honey market. Sam's honey has sent me a bunch of business but also has caused people to quit buying honey. 

I apologise to the Canadians dumping that grade B dark maple syrup for what I am about to say but if you have tasted the best of Vermont you will have to agree that your grade b extra dark is crap!

OK! I know why you dump your crap. You can not afford to sell the best honey and Maple syrup to Sam's and make a profit!

I rest my case. 

I have been told by reliable sources Sam's is making payment 180 days after taking delivery. Why are you guys still kissing Sam's ---?

Thanks Joel for the chance to say on beesource what I told the Souix Bee management in person last year at the honey board meeting in K.C.! 
YOU CAN'T BUILD A HONEY BUSINESS SELLING CRAP! The Souix Bee management said they are selling plenty of their honey. 
They will I said until somebody puts a bear of excellent honey in their hands. Then you have lost a customer!


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## Sungold (May 11, 2003)

I think Joel is spot on. He didn't say that consumer aren't willing to pay a premium for your "Local. Raw. Unprocessed. Sourwood (or any regional varietal)" in fact, he says they will. The question is what are they willing to pay a premiun to? As the price of honey "the commodity" moves significantly lower for a sistained period of time, the lower the base becomes that consumers are willing to pay a permium off of. So you will still get a permium, but it will be off of a lower base.
I am a pipsqueak wholesaler (to a premium market) and I'm feeling the pressure. If your not, that's great. One word of caution here regarding lower prices, I believe that we are going to see price increases on packaging materials (glass, resin, etc.) in Q4/05 (It's an oil thing!). So don't lower your prices too quickly because once you do, it's difficult to raise them again.


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## Bob Harrison (Mar 15, 2005)

Not sure about price increase on glass but in the Midwest our main suppier can not get the two pound and eight ounce queenline jars. Say to use plastic as not sure when the pipeline will open up. Are others having problems getting these sizes?


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## BubbaBob (Jan 18, 2005)

<<As the price of honey "the commodity" moves significantly lower for a sistained period of time, the lower the base becomes that consumers are willing to pay a permium off of. So you will still get a permium, but it will be off of a lower base.>>

Nope...not when you can make it "special".

Honey at wholesale bulk is lower than ever, yet I'm 50 cents to a dollar higher per pound at retail than last year.

BubbaBob


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## Sungold (May 11, 2003)

BubbaBob,

Significantly raising retail prices (on material volume)in a declining wholesale market.

Wow! If you are able to successfully sistain that, your on to something. I've never been able to do that.


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## Bob Harrison (Mar 15, 2005)

Packers have been very successful at keeping their retail price up while reaping huge rewards from buyers which do not have a clue as to the wholesale price of honey.
Stupid beekeepers afraid to ask a higher price for their product is what keeps the price of local and specialty honey down. 
Packers have no such hangup. They sit in their offices and with greed and happily screw the beekeeper and the customer.
In Iran and the middle east much adultrated honey is sold reaping big profits for the beekeeper. After awhile those customers think all honey tastes like a 50/50 mix of honey/syrup! 
Keep doing as your doing BubbaBob and you will make a serious profit from beekeeping. Play the packers game like many suggest and you will be having trouble breaking even.
When I get a call for pollination I figure costs etc and set the price. If the orchard tells me the low figure the last beekeeper charged I say take it or leave it. Many beekeepers are doing the same in California. Tired of being screwed by brokers taking the Lion's share of pollination fees!
If I can't make money why bother? 

My friend Jim Fischer talked about all the honey lost from not getting on supers in time. I was concerned when the price was a buck fifty a pound in the drum. Now all I want is enough to sell myself directly. Why produce and sell below the cost of production? Why play the packers game? Let the bees winter on honey.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

So what Bob and Rob are saying is they are unaffected by the market forces the rest of the world live and die by? Maybe they are, possibly they have developed good niche markets which is what we should all be striving for. I don't think $4.75/lb is over-inflated for Bobs' market area. Bob, you produce and sell 24,000 lbs of honey a year or am I misinterpreting your statement? (must have about 250 -300 hives since the Ga. avg. is well under 100lb/yr.). Certainly your posts don't reflect it. Rob, I would suggest if you sell honey in barrels as you stated your average per pound price of retail is affected by that. Bob, saying "nope" doesn't change the fact that in any market venue where there is competition the wholesale price of a raw material will effect you. I see commercials every single day from people who have "special" products. Sungolds analogy is how things are in the real world. I sell every drop I produce directly to very loyal customers in one of the largest, most competitive and well educated markets in the world. Part of that loyality is built on the concept that I didn't gouge them during the recent price onslaught. I also like the thought my honey is on the tables of the very rich and also the very common man, like me.


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## BubbaBob (Jan 18, 2005)

Joel, that Georgia "average" includes folks that think good management is letting the bees do their natural thing, which these days includes not checking for pests, etc.

In reality, the average in GA for well managed hives (that is, hives where the beek pays attention) is in the hundred pound range. I do much better than that...not because I'm smarter or do a better job than them, but because I live in the NE corner, in the southern Appalaichan Mountains, the native home of the sourwood tree. When the honey making is over in the rest of the state, and folks have their 100 lb average, I'm only halfway through...I still have the sourwood flow to go, which is 3-5 mediums of honey.

BubbaBob


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Yeah that's true in new York too, the average is 75 lbs a hive. If I got that I'd have to burn my hives to keep warm in the winter. I'm interested in how you developed your niche what your venue is (without giving away too much) and what kind of education you did with customers. It took years because of competition from both the large number of beekeepers here, the depreswsed economy and the big stores where everybody here shops, to finally find our place. It sure feels good once you do! At any rate, spill it, 24,000 lbs is no small retail feat.


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## Sungold (May 11, 2003)

Rob said: "Packers have been very successful at keeping their retail price up while reaping huge rewards from buyers which do not have a clue as to the wholesale price of honey."

Sungolds Reply: Sure some people are going to try a little honey market arbitrage. This only works in the short run. Do it long enough or frequently enough and they will loose creditability with their customers.
Further, my experience has been just the opposite of the "buyers without a clue" scenario, the buyers (small as they might be) I talk with are very aware of the global, national, regional and local market conditions of the underlying commodities of the products that they are buying. They are also keenly aware of the consumers willingness to pay a premium for distinctive, high quality, local (read me "special") honey.


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## Hillside (Jul 12, 2004)

BubbaBob,

I'm not sure that I'm reading your post correctly, but it appears that you have an outlet where you are selling 24,000 pounds of honey per year -- and at 4.75 per pound, which is great.

I'm wondering what kind of outlet you have. Is it a retail site where you sell only hive related products or is it a location where there is a greater range of product? 

Even though honey is a pretty good complement to my greenhouse sales, I would be hard pressed to retail that much honey.


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## BubbaBob (Jan 18, 2005)

<<So what Bob and Rob are saying is they are unaffected by the market forces the rest of the world live and die by?>>

I promise I don't mean to sound ****y, but well...yes.

I don't sell to the rest of the world. I sell to several speciality markets that are willing to pay a premium if I make the product "special", and I work hard to make my honey "special".

First, I am blessed to live in an area that has, within 25 miles of me, 5 LARGE gated communities full of weekenders and relatively young retirees from Atlanta that actually disdain "regular" stuff if something special is available. These are the same people that will pay $150.00 for a felted handbag or hat at a boutique rather than pay $75.00 for the same item from a regular store. Because I am, or at least portray myself as, the local hillbilly who has a few hives producing "special" honey from, and for, the local clients. People believe what they want to believe, and this image self-perpetuates despite the fact that you see my honey in every antique store, beauty shop, apple barn, jewlery store (yep! jewlery stores), and DOCTORS OFFICE in the area.

I said I average $.50/lb retail. That's the average that includes high dollar speciality honey (sourwood, $6.50 for a 1 lb jar) and speciality honey products (whipped honey at $5.00 for 8 oz...$120.00/gal) balanced against some wholesale case lots. My bottom dollar, even wholesale though, is $3.50/lb.

Another thing that helps is the fact that there aren't many beeks around anymore. The older guys are quitting either due to health or because the last 3-5 years here have been terrible if you didn't stay on top of things DAILY, and the older guys do things the old ways. Nobody young is getting into beekeeping around here anymore. I'm 50 and am the youngest beekeeper I know.

And I hustle.

I have a roadside stand that started as a boiled peanut stand and has evolved into boiled peanuts, fried pork skins, honey, salsa, marmalade, homemade root beer and ginger beer, lemonade, felted handbags, beaded jewelry, stained glass trinkets (high dollar commissioned pieces available by appointment), turned wood gee-haws (same art commissions available as stained glass), and, as soon as I get the goats here and milking, goat milk and "boutique goat cheeses". It is open as a roadside stand 3-6 Fridays, 1-7 Sat and Sun, and I set it up 8-noon at the local farmers market. I won't say how much I deposit on Monday mornings, but Fri afternoon, yesterday, and today I moved 200# of peanuts one pound at a time, 50# of pork skins one pound at a time, and 300# of honey, mostly one pound at a time...and that's before the other stuff. All from a 5x12 utility trailer with a thrown together "concession stand" built on it.

Image...it's all about image. Some of my customers are actually buying honey, but a lot of them are buying, between the honey, peanuts, and pork skins especially, southern appalaichia of 50 years ago...in a plastic bottle with a golden liquid in it that tastes wonderful.

And yes...I do wear bib overalls when I'm working the stand.

I pay as much attention to "world wide market forces" as Rolls Royce and Lambourgini do to the car market.

BubbaBob


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## Barry Digman (May 21, 2003)

> And I hustle.


Ding ding ding! No more calls, we have a winner!

There's a segment of the market that will pay top dollar for a product or service not simply because of the snob appeal, but because they understand quality and what it takes to produce it. As hard as it is for the Wal-Mart crowd to believe, there really is a difference between mass-produced stuff from China (including honey) and the top quality item. The amount of work and expertise that goes into the product is evident, and customers (as opposed to consumers) are willing to pay for that. Most of them didn't get where they are by wasting their money on second or third-rate junk, or by slogging their way through their life like mindless robots. They seem to have an innate sense of what a product is really worth and are willing to pay a fair price to the person who went to the trouble to produce it. The others are only interested in paying the lowest price possible, and typically get what they pay for.


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## EKW (Feb 2, 2005)

I have been a beekeeper for over ten years, and have never understood why in the heck so many beekeepers sell their honey so cheap!! Then they sit around crying and moaning about how they're all going broke. Gimme a break! I live in a rural county in Minnesota which not to long ago had the dubious distinction of being one of the ten poorest counties in the NATION! The closest town boasts a population of about 200. We are 3 hours from Minneapolis/St. Paul- I don't have access to
Joel's "very loyal customers in one of the largest, most competitive and well educated markets in the world". In spite of that handicap, however, I still sell a good percentage of the honey I produce at a nearby farmer's market for $5/pound. I do sell in my immediate neighborhood for $4/pound, but that is only because I know that most of the people around here simply cannot afford to pay $5/pound. Like Joel, I want customers from all walks of life to be able to enjoy my honey- you can't get people to consume MORE of a product if they can't afford it to begin with. But, I also know how hard I work to produce the crop, how much $$$ I have invested in bees and equipment, how much my production costs have increased along with the cost of just about everything else lately, and how much more difficult it has become to keep bees since the advent of the varroa mite, small hive beetle, Africaized bees, etc. And, I know how superior my honey is to the honey which is mass produced and sold on the supermarket shelf. 

I offer samples of all of my honey. I make every effort to educate the consumer as to the differences in the types of honey available, and I offer a no questions asked, money back guarantee on every item I sell. I want every customer to walk away knowing that they have purchased some of the best honey they have ever consumed- if they don't feel that way, I don't want their money. 

Like BubbaBob, I manage my hives very intensively and have higher than average yields. I don't think I have yet produced a yearly harvest of 24,000 pounds, but I have done half that, and so far have managed to sell every drop of it at my price. The fact is, there simply isn't too much really good honey produced in this country- the market is there. True, some people aren't as discriminating as others- that's what Sam's Club and WalMart are there for. The way I look at it, if a customer can't tell the difference between low-quality, blended, heated, filtered, and maybe imported honey and the premium varietals I produce, he shouldn't be spending more for my product anyway. Doesn't matter to me, there are plenty of people who can tell the difference and who will by my honey. I haven't even begun to tap into the market yet.


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## beebarf (Feb 14, 2003)

Before you low ball your honey consider this.... what is honey really worth? what is a bees worth per hour? (life is 6 weeks long), a penny? 60,000 bees working a 12 hour day = 720,000 bee hours daily X 2 weeks (to fill a super) = 10,080,000/bee hours in 2 weeks. times that by a penny = $100,800.00 for about 6 gallons of honey that is like $16,800/per gallon. dont sell yourself or the girls short, their blood is on that honey.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Hey Bob, any farms for sale in your area? Just kidding. I figured you had quite a bit of effort in your market and location, location, location! I really enjoyed reading about your marketing though, I have great respect for that type of effort. I have 3 other beekeepers within 30 miles of me that run 700 hives between them as well as about 50 hobyists. Of course we have several hobbyist that sell honey at $2.00 - $3.00/lb as they just want to offset the cost of their hobby. No one here, (except Ithaca) shops at the Farmers Market. We have 2 gated communities in our county too, probably somewhat different though because the tennants are called inmates. I live dead in the center of the IBM, Corning Inc., Singer, NCR and Ward Lafrance crash area. The economy in the much of the northeast has been in the toilet since the '70's. Still I love the region though and it is home! That's why I drive the 250 miles to Greenmarket in NYC every week. Down there though it's the coops, health food stores and certain ethnic groups seem to not be able to let go of a dollar bill unless they spend 15 minutes dickering over price (which we never do). It's expensive, time consuming getting in and out and demanding but out customer base are great people. Keep up the good work though and thanks for sharing with us!


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## BerkeyDavid (Jan 29, 2004)

THis is my first year with more honey than I can give away or eat. 250 pounds extracted last week from my 3 hives. So my neighbor farmer who has a stand is selling my one pound jars at $4 each and giving me $3. THursday he had it marked at $5 and didn't sell any, so the next day (Friday) he marked it at $4 and sold out all 10 jars over the weekend. This is just a little stand with sweet corn, green beans and tomatoes. 

Now he wants 10 more jars.

So I am thinking I will stay with that price for the rest of the summer. He also needs pollination for his pumkins and strawberries so I am thinking about keeping the price as is for now and try to keep him happy and also maybe pick up an agreement to pollinate his stuff next year if I can get enough splits to meet his pollination needs.

Then after we get our customers hooked on the honey then increase it back up to $5 a pound. What do you all think?

I do agree that many sell too cheap. If you think of your product as a cheap product, others will do so too. Whatever image you project most folks will accept (within reason). So treat your honey and yourself with respect and others will do the same.

Having said that I am a little embarrased that I am selling for only $3 a pound...


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## ChellesBees (Apr 1, 2003)

But, you are actually wholesaling at $3.00/pound. Your neighbor is retailing at $4.00/pound, and taking 25% commission. Not a bad setup really.


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## Hillside (Jul 12, 2004)

It seems like an excellent deal. Let's assume your neighbor is selling three pounds per hour. Would you want to sit out by the road all day for another three dollars an hour?

By the way. If your farmer friend is a fairly close neighbor, he is probably already getting all the pollination he needs without paying. I have a neighbor just down the road who takes his squash to the state fair every year. He appreciates my bees.


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## BerkeyDavid (Jan 29, 2004)

<If your farmer friend is a fairly close neighbor, he is probably already getting all the pollination he needs without paying. >

I hope he doesn't understand this. He has 10 acres of strawberries and about 5 acres of pumpkins, plus greenhouses. He hired pollination services this year. I wasn't aware of it because the hives were hidden from the road. I am trying to find out what he paid and how many hives he brought in. I wonder if my bees would abandon their sweet clover to pollinate pumkins and strawberries? Although they may have been done blooming by the time the sweet clover kicked in.

I am also worried about the migrant bees being within a mile of my yard and sharing some diseases with mine. 

The 80+ yr. oldtimer who lives between us just raved about my bees yesterday when I dropped off a 2 pound gift jar. He said his apples haven't done so well for years and years.

Thanks for the comments on pricing.


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