# Honey Sold Out... now what?



## Laurence Hope (Aug 24, 2005)

I think you could well buy honey from a friend or even someone nearby that you find that sells honey, and package it as "local honey", but not as produced by you. That's what I intend, as I look for some other variety to offer to my quickly establised customers.


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## JohnBeeMan (Feb 24, 2004)

IMO--once you start reselling you have defintely passed from hobbist to commercial beekeeping.

Yes, there may be other local beekeeper that would prefer to sell in bulk to you instead of dealing with the day-to-day sells option (farmers keeping bees for polliniation, small out-of-way beekeepers with few customers, etc.).

However buying bulk honey from afar and selling as 'local' is definetly getting into 'unethical' practices.


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## greenbeekeeping (Feb 13, 2003)

Hi there. I don't think that buying honey from another local beekeeper is unethical. I do it if I run low. The thing to look for though is someone that keeps hives in your area and is a beekeeper that you can trust and you know where you product comes from. Once you get loyal customers they are going to come back for more. IF you don't have their product they are going to go to a store and get it from who knows where. You would still be providing them with local product. It's really good business to work with other local beekeepers.


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## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

It is only unethical if you, as the seller, misrepresent the product you are selling. Period...


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

Sundance, you are right. i guess it is sorta weird to me to work hard to get honey from my bees and sell it at a good price and sell out, which is a good thing, but weird to buy some from someone local, adding that cost, selling it and making less of a profit (but still a profit).

I guess I look at it like this: If i buy someone elses honey, I can make some more money but I do not have the satisfaction of it being honey from my bees. Does that really matter? I dont know. The biggest thing is if Billy Bob came to me, wanting to buy some honey and I told him that I am sold out, what will he think? Will he be pissed off? Will he be a customer next year? 

But what I dont want is to buy honey from someone else and not sell all of it and have some left over going into the next honey selling season. 

isnt it a good thing if a beekeeper sells out of honey? so why by more from another beekeeper to sell? I suppose one could say that by buying some from another beekeeper, you are supporting the industry.

I dont know....


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## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

As you grow it is important to service your customer base. If they like your honey (and others you choose only if they pass your requirements) they will keep buying from you.

Get more honey from a small outfit you trust and sell it as "honey you trust" and would eat yourself. Not heated to extremes, minimally filtered, etc.

Be proud to sell a superior product. Even if it is not yours.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>It is only unethical if you, as the seller, misrepresent the product you are selling. Period...

Exactly. If you claim it's yours and it's not or you claim it's local and it's not, that's unethical. If you only claim what's true it's not unethical.

Maybe you're selling your honey too cheap.


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

How local is local?

Hawk


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Since for most of our customers local relates to pollen and nectar source we divide it according to flora. Most of New England has similar hardwood and conifer forests with open fallow land of similar nectar producing plants. Mid atlantic (southern PA-south) starts to see distinctly different plants with mountain laurels, dogwood trees and more open fallow land. We look at local as a region in that respect.

[ October 09, 2005, 07:17 PM: Message edited by: Joel ]


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## BjornBee (Feb 7, 2003)

Some who buy 'local" do so because of allergy and other health benefits. Local from that aspect is within 50 miles.

A white pine may be a white pine over thousands of miles, but the "dna" of a species of trees are very similar within 50 miles, but may be very different outside this range. Meaning that eating honey with pollen from within 50 miles of where you live is quite different than eating the same type of honey outside that range. You have to have pollen from sources within a certain area to be effective for allergies, etc.

Forensic investigators have solved crimes by locating plant sources to very specific areas. Its the same with pollen. The pollen make-up would be different over many miles, even with the same plant used as a basis.

Wildflower honey is the same all-over for marketing purposes. However, "local" should mean local, within 50 miles. Why sell something else and have your customers all of a sudden see no benefit from "local" honey, and believe it no longer works for allergies, etc. To be effective, it needs to be from the same sources and plants of a local nature, to which the allergies are based from.

If your selling honey based on floral source, than what joel said is correct. If your selling for allergies and other health reasons, than "local" has more meaning than just floral type or region.

And don't ask about the research. I do not have it at my finger tips.


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

No Sir, it was an honest question and you gave an interesting answer. thanks.

And that was exactly what I was thinking of when I asked the question. People buy local honey for the anti-sneezing factor. Which is why I produce it, also. I'm not sold on the fifty miles, yet. gotta think a bit.

Hawk


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

michael sezs:
Maybe you're selling your honey too cheap.

tecumseh replies:
in the marketing world this is called price discovery and it sounds a lot easier that it is to accomplish in a real world environment. and fairly simple economics tell us that at a low enough price the market will clear. you have experienced this directly. hopefully your customers will enjoy your product and line up next year when your production has doubled or tripled.

my short advice is.. offer a quality product at a fair price, then both you and the customer benefit from the exchange and the customer will return again and again. I get the sense that most of my customers want to see a beekeepers faced attached to the honey. many have expessed the opinion of being tired of the tasteless product offered at the supermarket.


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## dgoodman (May 30, 2005)

I used to sell meat for a specialty rancher. We used to say, "The thing promoted, and the actual thing are the same." It's a nice way to do business.

I have to echo the comment, "Maybe you're selling the honey too cheap."

It is clear that in the supply and demand world, you've sold at a price that results in selling out. You have a finite amount of inventory. Why not find out what the market will bare? Raise the prices until you find that perfect equilibrium of supply and demand. You might find that you net exactly the same without selling the other guy's product, and the thing promoted will remain the actual thing.

Good luck.

DG

ps...If you want to really get into it, do a Google search on, "Price Elasticity of Demand"

[ October 11, 2005, 07:01 AM: Message edited by: dgoodman ]


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## Mitch (Jul 7, 2003)

In my sales i have found my costomers do come back the next year even if i run short some years.Year after year in my small town farmers market the sales go up Not so much in number of customers but the volume of honey they are useing.The last few years the smaller container sales are down while the larger ones are up.As for price it is all in what you can get the customers will let you know when you are out of line.A 25 cent differance on a 12oz bear is all it takes.


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

dgoodman sezs:
ps...If you want to really get into it, do a Google search on, "Price Elasticity of Demand"

tecumseh suggest:
just don't go there... actually it is the cross elasticity of supply and demand that are important, but only in a gross sense... but once again, just don't go there.

dgoodman does give a good example of price discovery in it's simplist context. number of sellers plus buyer taste, income and demographics will alter the context over time to where one is never quite sure if you are comparing apples to oranges. 

did you get a reasonable price for your product is really the only question you need to ask. customers that get a quality product at a resonable price (I like to call this value) will return again and again. In days long past in the accounting/business world we called this goodwill, but such concepts are so old fashionm, so olde school... don't you know?


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

dgoodman sezs:
ps...If you want to really get into it, do a Google search on, "Price Elasticity of Demand"

tecumseh suggest:
just don't go there... actually it is the cross elasticity of supply and demand that are important, but only in a gross sense... but once again, just don't go there.

dgoodman does give a good example of price discovery in it's simplist context. number of sellers plus buyer taste, income and demographics will alter the context over time to where one is never quite sure if you are comparing apples to oranges. 

did you get a reasonable price for your product is really the only question you need to ask. customers that get a quality product at a resonable price (I like to call this value) will return again and again. In days long past in the accounting/business world we called this nontangable asset goodwill, but such concepts are so old fashion, so olde school... don't you know?


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

I think that I priced my honey fair. Not to low and not to high. $5.00 for a pound, $4.50 for 12 oz, 8 oz for $4.00. If you look at my cost versus the profit margin on a sale, its not bad at all. I think $5.00 is a good price for honey and that is what I would pay. 

I understand the whole supply and demand and equalibrium point but I am not to interested in that. As long as I think I have a fair price, than it works for my operation.

What did not work is the old pricing assumption of taking your cost and multiplying it by three and that should be your selling price. That is silly in my opinion. That would make a pound of honey to retail at $2.80.


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## nursebee (Sep 29, 2003)

Local small beekeepers offer a unique product with unique properties (real or perceived). Many that buy my honey use it for supposed medicinal qualities. I have found my core repeat customers (the one that buy a case or more) are not very price sensitive.

I sort of agree with the raise the price comments, even more so if you have great interest from folks that want more AND if you are only going to keep 3 hives. I believe that a lot of folks don't sell honey for enough money for the work involved, but I do not know of many that charge $5 per pound either (proud Joe here included) On the other hand, at 250 # * $5 each = $1250. That is enough to build a lot of woodenware this winter. You see the profit/demand and could expand to make more money. A gentle increase in price along with expansion of business is the route I have taken.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

(Some who buy 'local" do so because of allergy and other health benefits. Local from that aspect is within 50 miles.)

So under this scenerio someone who is allerigc to ragweed (one of the most common plant allergins) could drive 60 miles and not be allergic in a similar but gentically different field of ragweed. As someone who suffered heavy allergies pre-bekeeping I can debunk that theory, with or without research proof.

Another point we can all identify with is bee sting resistance. My sting response is based on a high number of stings received from my bees(isolated DNA). When I'm in South Carolina (750 jiles from home)working in a friends yard (completly different strain of bees) I have an identical reaction to bee stings. 

To suggest allergy reaction is subject mainly due to DNA differences in similar plants to a 50 mile radius is just not logical. I don't disagree genetics may play a role, In light of experiance I don't believe it is the critical role.

Without some pretty conclusive reserch results I would have to disagree and call regional just that, regional according to the gross presence of a plant variety and the similar proteins they would produce.


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## Mitch (Jul 7, 2003)

Chef 
Congrats on a good selling season.It sounds to me like you are getting a fair price.


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

Thank you Mitch. I think $5.00 is a good price to pay.


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## Mitch (Jul 7, 2003)

I think so too if you are happy and the customer is happy it is a good deal.I will not get in the debate over prices i quit posting mine a few years back.As we can all see the replies came from all over the country so the prices will be way different from different places.There one one thing i will not do priceing honey,that is undercut the local guy making a liveing selling his honey. 

Now you asked about selling somone elses honey when you ran out.I see nuthing wrong with doing that as long as you label it as such.Who knows next season the shoe may be on the other foot.


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## BjornBee (Feb 7, 2003)

Joel, Back up and reverse direction. If you are allergic to ragweed, then yes you may be allergic to ragweed from different places. Its just like some who are not allergic to anything no matter where they go, while some will have allergies (as you mention) from different locations.

You are not desensitizing yourself to ragweed all over the country all at one time. You would be desensitizing yourself to ragweed, with a specific make-up of a particular area. Thats not to say that some effect might be felt in ragweed no matter where you go, but to be most effective, honey containing pollen that is used for desensitizing allergic reaction should be local in nature.

Your claim to have allergies both prior to, and after having bees may be true. Nobody is claiming 100% effectiveness. Brenda Adderly, M.H.A. states in many of her books, and papers, one being "The latest buzz on products from the hive", that "17 percent of those with allergies will see significant results".(with many of lesser degrees.) Whether people buy honey for perceived or real results, it should be left to thier conclusions, and should be given full consideration of the fact that thier honey is local, which increases the results of such effort.

Knowing that you have allergies prior to, and after keeping bees, is not rational reasoning to claim that you can debunk anything. Many see no relief of such daily honey consumption, you being one of them. Thats not to say others do not see results that you do not.

And lets not get caught up on 50 miles. It may be 30, or 1000 miles. The futher you go, the more changes in the footprint makeup of the same plants. Desensitizing yourself has better results with pollen of a local nature.

I won't play the word game of region vs. local. I do not buy honey from New York or Virginia, although they have similar plants, and market and sell my honey as "local", using the rationalization that the nectar was collected from similar plants. If you do, so be it. Thank you for being honest, and I hope you are as honest with your customers.

I wonder what customers think in thier minds when they are defining "local honey"? I know my customers buy because I produce it in the local area, and not based on regional definitions. I call it "local", not "northeastern region".

Your bee sting comments would only hold water if no bees were never shipped anywhere. If bee genetics were left to thier own migratory movement, than the changes in genetics between bees on the east coast and west coast could be significant enough over time, that different reactions between the two could be more significant than they are today. Of course bees may have the same genetics that cause reaction to humans from all over the world. Bee sting being a bee sting, all over the place. In both cases, using this as an example for another statement about plants is stretching it to make a point.


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## Dan Williamson (Apr 6, 2004)

Chef, 

I'd say you've priced your honey fair. You are getting more$/lb than I am. $4/lb here. I doubt I'd be able to move it at $5/lb. But different locations probably can command different prices.

Happy selling and good luck.


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

at $5 a pound I think you did very nicely. like mr williamson I would be hard pressed to move my little honey crop here at that price, but then many of my customers are from a bit further south and their income is limited. I do however acquire some small 'profit' when I see them smile after they have tasted their new acquisition.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Bjorn, I don't disagree with your points. Most of the reading I've done does state if you're buying honey for allergies buy it as close to the source as possible. I find no scientific studies to support this theory. If you are aware of any please post them. However my review shows very little scientific research has been done and some studies showed no relation between the use of honey and allergies. One even shows increased symptoms from ingesting honey. 

(Thank you for being honest, and I hope you are as honest with your customers.)

Thanks for your conern relating to our customer relations integrity. We don't represent any un-substantiated health claims relating to honey. Our honey is marketed as small farm produced, minimally processed, delicious honey from the Beautiful and Pristine area of the Finger Lakes Region of Upstate New York, Period. 

When people ask us about specific health benefits we inform them of honey's anti-microbial properties and the value in that relationship. We also disucss the known anti-oxidant value of honey and it's benefits. We discuss that the body makes much more efficient use of the 7 natural sugars in honey in comparison to white refined sugar. Since we can't produce enough to meet our demand we need no further window dressing. 

In relation to allergies and local honey the truthful answer relates to the following:

1) Most sufferers don't know the actual source floral source of their allergies and you don't know if your honey contains the related pollens. 
2) The most common allergies relate to Grasses and trees which are not predominate honey producers.
4) Many allergy sufferers actually suffer worse symptoms due to honey. (yes I know that is part of the resistance build-up process)

The few scientific studies that exist have a wide range of conflicting information. 

That leaves us with the anecdotal aspect. You have opinions based on your research that support your promotional value to local customers. I have a large customer base 250 miles from home that have told me they have both suffered increased allergy symptoms from certain honey and other who claim to have gained a considerable relief. I have customers who swear to a variety of reliefs including rhumatism, cataracts, arthritis,colds and a slew of others. This is all non-solicited since we don't sell our honey on that basis. Is there some other explanation than the effect is related to honey from 250 miles away? I've read information that indicates honey, not local, not from a known allergic floral source, still helps build resistance due to the increased stimulas to the immune system. We don't need to sell our honey as medicine.

So where is the truth, 50 miles, 100 miles, 300,1,000miles? Neither you or I have the proof or authority to impose this standard under current research. We just don't know. That really is the truth. I firmly believe honey has many unexplored benefits My honesty with my customers is that I'm not going to use hype to sell our honey.

[ October 13, 2005, 04:02 PM: Message edited by: Joel ]


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## Cyndi (Apr 26, 2005)

>>How local is local? Hawk

Somewhere a long time ago I once read that local honey was considered anywhere within a 100 mile radius due to the types of flowers that the bees would be visiting to help with the allergies. What do ya think??


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## Cyndi (Apr 26, 2005)

For what it's worth. Recently I was asked by an Indian friend who runs an Indian store to get him some honey. He showed me his honey from India and man, it was awful and had a pitiful smell to it. Soo, since this is my first year of beekeeping and I had absolutely NO honey to spare, not even for me, I went to a local beekeeper who sold me her honey at a wholesale price. She put her labels on it and that is exactly what I gave my Indian friend and at my cost. Well, I hope he doesn't like her honey that much







and start buying from her regularly as I will have lost a good customer when I do get some honey to sell - like next year, but I didn't feel comfortable taking her labels off, and I didn't feel good about saying it was my honey either! I figure if he really wants to do business with me he will, if not that's okay too. I'll probably end up giving my honey away to friends and relatives for Christmas Gifts, LOL!!


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

cyndi sezs:
Well, I hope he doesn't like her honey that much

tecumseh replies:
he bought the product from cyndi, so the relationship is between you and you indian merchant and the beekeep is a red headed stepchild in this relationship....

as a point of information I would have been much more interested in doing a comparison between the honey you acquired for the indian business person and his own 'native' honey...

I for example hate (even the smell is highly revolting to tecumseh) buckwheat honey, although I am very aware that some folks drool over the stuff. At this point in space and time many of my customers express a definite preference for dark honey, whereas my experience says light amber honey is 'the best" (ps: many of these folks seem to believe that light honey indicates it has been thinned with suger water). Having some handle on the preferences of your customers is a good place to begin the mental journey into marketing.


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

Hey Joel, I used to believe what you're saying. that any allergy benefits from honey came from desensitizing witht he pollen from that plant. My kid brother the MD told me to quit saying that. There's a whole lot more to it than that. Honey as an antioxidant really reworks the immune system. Nobody knows how or what it does yet but there are enough examples of folks who used to have allergies, I'm one, to make a case in court if necessary.

Thanks Cindi, I use the local honey somewhere between 50-100 miles. And I got it from the "experts" at bee-source.

Hawk


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Hawk, where is the conflict between our statments Here's what I said.

{I've read information that indicates honey, not local, not from a known allergic floral source, still helps build resistance due to the increased stimulas to the immune system.}

I'm a firm believer that Honey, local, foreign, goldenrod, Florida Citrus, Italian Chestnut helps stimulate the immune system with a wide variety of benefits including a quicker immune response to foreign protiens, ie antihistamines. My point is local honey may be an added benefit IF it is from the correct floral source (unlikely) a person is allergic to due to the rationale of main stream allegery treatment. 

I don't believe a person who is allegic to ragweed pollen isn't allergic to it everywhere they go therefore ragweed pollen in honey from any distance could be an added benefit to the immune response.

Am I misreading your post? I here you say it is the pollen and so much more?


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## Cyndi (Apr 26, 2005)

Tecumseh,

The imported Indian honey is absolutely awful!! When my Indian merchant friend showed me the stuff that went bad on his shelves, I opened a jar to smell it - it was gross!! I have no idea what the heck you called that stuff, for all I know it could of been carmelized sugar with a hint of honey - maybe. 

I have a jar on the way that someone picked up for me recently at an Ayurvedic store in Dehli, India. I'll let you know how that is. In India the bees like the Neem trea and they say the honey from it is very bitter, but very medicinal. I'm not real comfortable with Indian practices of how they obtain their honey much less their practices of how they sell it - watered down and mostly sugar. The Ayurvedic method should be much better because they are licensed sorda like our version of the FDA, but we shall see soon enough.

[ October 16, 2005, 11:05 AM: Message edited by: Cyndi ]


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

More, Any honey works as a boost to the immune system. Can't say this to customers though and they will want local. so we sell them local.

Hawk


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

cyndi adds:
have a jar on the way that someone picked up for me recently at an Ayurvedic store in Dehli, India.

tecumseh replies:
well I for one would be very interested in hearing what you discover in relations to the honey from India. 

To Joel and Hawk:
I am always curious as to why the benefits of the vitamins and minerals in unprocessed honey is often overlooked. I would suspect that analysis on a broad geographical bases would indicate wide variation.

just a thought...


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

scruff, scruff, scrape(Hawk that's me getting out my soap box)

[Can't say this to customers though and they will want local. so we sell them local.]

This is a huge fallacy. American beekeepes produce about 20% of the honey consumed in the USA. If what you are saying is true and everone wants this local honey we have why are a majority of beekeepers selling their honey at pathetic wholesale prices to packers who are blending it with honey from everywhere but here?. I've got 10 beekeepers in my county. The only two making a profit are marketing outside the area.

The American public doesn't buy Florida Orange Juice and Idaho potatoes. They don't ask is the cotton in my jeans from Georgia and did American workers sew them. They look at the quality, the price and off they go. If it's from Walmart and convenient all the better. 

The best health claims on honey are a thin veil at best. Some areas are strong but antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, provable allergy relief, lets get real. Yes they may be small fringe benefits. We should use them to support a great product. I will sell about 20,000 lbs this year all handed directly to the person who would use it. One thing above all else brings customers back, exceptional flavor and variety. The majority of People exclaim how great our honey tastes not how much better their allergies are or how few free radicals they have running around in their bodies. (anyone who prouduces honey with care can produce the same delicious taste) Yes folks talk about the other things, but people aren't buying medicine. 

Same thing with our Finger Lakes Wines. (which incidentally are higher in antioxidants than any honey). Until they could compete with the taste of California wines they were a flop. 

Here's my point. We are competeing in a fast paced world where China is the fastests growing economy. If you really think we can base our product on "local appeal" good luck. Big industry with big money couldn't do it. When the chain produce stores like Wegmans appear in your town with Sue Bee, Aunt Sues and Millers Organic Honey, it's all over but the drive to the packer. I've been there. That's why I drive 250 miles a week to market.

The milk industry spent millions touting health benefits. What was their most successful campaign? Splash some milk on a cute country singers lips and two words "Got Milk"?

Tariffs and embargos didn't save the American steel, textile or clothing industries. They won't protect us either. As an industry, we need to get a grip on the reality of the buying public and move our efforts in that direction. 

Still don't beleive it, lets do a poll and see how many beekeepes are actually making a living or even a profit from all these customers out their looking for local honey! It's a sad truth but truth just the same. 

Scurff, scrunch, scrape (The box is back in the closet)


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## BjornBee (Feb 7, 2003)

Joel, I agree with what you are saying. Some say that honey is nothing but glorified sugar. Others say it does help with medical conditions. Some see relief, and some do not. I'l let them dicide.

I will add that I have several MAJOR markets within my area. All were carrying standard supermarket brands. Dutch Gold is in my backyard and they pack for these brands. I knocked them right off the shelf by asking one simple question to the manager. "why do you carry a brand of honey that could be bought anywhere, versus stocking your shelf with local honey?" I promised these stores that with local honey they would see an increase in sales. And sure enough it did. They almost all said that years ago they did have some beekeeper providing honey but they died, had bees die, or some other story. Whether local honey benefits are percieved or real, sales are based on that "local" sticker. Local does sell.

If you want a good resource for honey benefits, contact the National Honey board at www.honey.com
They have a booklet called "honey-health and therapeutics qualities". It has good basic information but also references and list 167 published books and research papers. I think for anyone wanting information on honey in relationship to health, this would be a good start.


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Bjorn, good points as usual. I like your approach to the store. I hadn't even considered your location with Dutch Gold. Clearly you have to compete in a tough market. I don't think using local or theraputic to support honey sales is a bad idea, but it should be with factual support. Thanks for the link, I use NHB's website frequently and use their literature extensively. Partially because I am forced to pay for it. There are many, substantiated benefits to honey that for many of reasons make it the only choice for a healthy sweetner. Maybe that with the flavor is our "Got Milk". Someone smarter than me may even come up with a catchy way to say it.


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## BjornBee (Feb 7, 2003)

I also think that a distiction to store bought honey and local should be further defined. Store bought honey packed by the big packers has been high filtered, heated which kills the beneficial enzymes, and removes alot of the minerals and other healthy stuff. Just saying local does promote a certain "health' benefit to alot of consumer minds. But its the fact that the honey is very minimally processed and considered "raw" which is the real way(benefit) of looking at it. Raw honey leaves the minerals, vitamins and enzymes. I wonder how many of these consumer just bought honey "local" and did not see the benefits as they just bought from a local source, and the honey did not qualify as "raw".


Kartman from southpark would just promote a simple saying for honey like..."sweeeeeet".

How about..."Get RAW, get LOCAL, get HEALTHY".

[ October 19, 2005, 10:49 AM: Message edited by: BjornBee ]


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

"RAW" is printed on the label. Should be on all of ours. Local is the equivalent of saying "Got Milk?" It means different things to different people. It works for me. Without the brochures. Someone who wants to argue for it will not buy just on the words local and raw. I wish I could say I drop the argumentive customers. But you know me. I like a good fight.

And if the health benefits don't get em, I'll try the economic benifits of buying locally, the ecological benifits of supporting colorado bees(they're dying out you know. varroa. AHB.), or the Spiritual benefits of loving your neighbor's honey.

It IS almost a religion.

Hawk


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

lots of good marketing stuff here.... thanks to Joel and Bjornbee for sharing.


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## wfarler (Jul 9, 2003)

*why people buy*

helps to ask why people buy.

I get people who have been told by their doctors to eat local honey for allergies. I happend to agree with them but I tell them results may vary.
I get people who just like the taste, some years they buy one jar and come back and buy 10 more.
I get people who like my label (seriously).
I get people who want to add honey to gift baskets and like the fact that it comes from our little community and has a picture of local wildflowers on the label.
I get relatives who feel like they have to buy ( I buy their magazine subsciptions, girl scout cookies and so forth).
I get people who buy because the person they are with goes gaga over my honey and they feel like, well heck I need some too.

I price at $5 / pound. It's simple. Sell more than I can harvest. But honey yields in my area are slim 30-40 lbs a hive are good yields and if I could pull 200lbs a hive (and so could the 3 or 4 other beeks in my area) then $5 might be more work to get.

The grocery stores sell specialty honey for $5-$7 pound and it isn't even local. Imported honey runs from $1.65-$4.50 lb depending on the store. It's all heated filtered blended clover tasting stuff. 

I've had Beeks that feed sugar during the flow (mostly newbies) give me samples of their honey. Makes me glad to know I'm competing with them - their honey tastes like nothing.

Don't see anything wrong with packing someone else's honey as long as it's disclosed. Had one of the kids in the neighborhood who was so excited about selling the honey from the hives in his backyard he bought bulk tallow honey from a migratory beek, labeled in his own jar and sold at the local farmers market. I was running out of honey so I didn't object but he should have been labeling it as 'packed by' or 'bottled by'. He was an enthusiastic teenager that was showing a lot of entreprenuerial spirit, thought about pointing this out to him but decided I was enough of a curmudgeon as it was. The honey was from Texas, he wasn't calling it local and was upfront about where it came from, besides it tasted pretty good.


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

wfarler:

Wow, your brining old threads back. Kinda funny really. 

I continue to sell out each year. After I sell out of my honey, I "help" another sideliner to move their honey. I have developed a good customer base and need to continue to supply them honey.


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## allrawpaul (Jun 7, 2004)

I think you should know exactly how your supplier medicates his bees and when, and how he processes his honey and where. There should be no doubt in your mind that the honey hasnt been contaminated in any way. Hey Isaac, do you only have 3 hives, or did only 3 of your hives produce a surplus? What % was blackberry, knotweed, other? I have 13 hives, only seven produced a considerable harvest-25lbs per hive. A little bit of light stuff in the spring, just a little blackberry( due to mismanagement, poor weather and split failure)Got mostly knotweed. Very dark.


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

Cant remember


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## xC0000005 (Nov 17, 2004)

I've had an ethical problem this season. My bees produced almost nothing I could sell (though they are packed for winter). They barely produced anything for my own use. The people who buy from me over the internet usually are under the impression that the honey they are getting comes from the bees they have just read about. It's almost an emotional connection. This year I've had to make it very clear that this honey is NOT from my bees. It's good honey, raw honey, honey I extracted myself but it is not from MY bees, and definitely not from any of the bees I write about. So far, so good.


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## Dan Williamson (Apr 6, 2004)

I've marketed my honey as local honey and honey from my hives.

I have been asked repeatedly if I buy my honey and repackage it. I can say no because I don't buy honey for resale.

I have no problem with folks who buy honey and resell it if the customer hasn't been lead to believe that the honey is from that particular beekeepers hives.

For me to suddenly start offering honey that I've purchased without making my customers aware would in my case be unethical and dishonest.


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