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producers must determine that no chemicals are being used where their bees naturally forage. But since honeybees may travel up to two miles from their hive to gather nectar and pollen, how can we know for sure that they’re not coming in contact with chemically treated plants? Feeding bees sugar-water supplements in spring and fall, when there is no nectar flow and pollen naturally available, is also prohibited in organic beekeeping unless the sugar is organic. Beekeepers often treat their bees with FDA-approved medications because honeybees are living creatures and they occasionally play host to pest or diseases; the use of these mainstream treatments is prohibited in order to qualify for an organic certification of your honey. Finally, beehives must be painted with nontoxic paints.

Besides adhering to these strict requirements, beekeepers need to file a potentially costly formal application to certify their honeybee hives as organic. They are also required to keep records and be inspected each year. Honey that is properly labeled organic could be traced to the honeybee hive it was harvested from. As a result of all of these rigid standards, truly organic honey is nearly impossible to find in the United States.

FAIR TRADE HONEY

Fair trade is a movement that promotes paying farmers fair prices for their products, especially when those products are exported from developing countries to more developed countries. This policy makes fair-trade honey a wise and responsible choice. The money makes a huge difference in the lives of the farmers and their families, especially in poorer countries. Criteria like healthy working conditions, sustainable farming, and fair-trade terms are strictly regulated. Fair-trade products are not necessarily organic, but higher prices are paid to those farmers who integrate sustainable techniques, like recycling and composting. Fair-trade organizations forbid the use of genetically modified (GM) seeds, and the organizations enforce this regulation as best they can.

KOSHER HONEY

The Torah refers to the ancient country of Israel as “a land flowing with milk and honey.” Honey is a quintessential part of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana. Apples and challah bread are traditionally spread with honey. Although honeybees are not kosher animals, honey is considered kosher, because even though bees bring honey into their bodies, honey is not a product of their bodies; in other words, honey is stored in bees’ bodies, but not produced there. For honey to be considered kosher, it needs to follow the same stringent preparation methods as all kosher foods.

STYLES OF HONEY

Besides the ubiquitous liquid form, honey comes in other forms and consistencies. By understanding each different style of honey available, you will know what you are purchasing. Here are the most common styles of honey found in the marketplace.

VARIETALS/MONOFLORA/SINGLE-FLORAL honeys are made from a single species of flower. Because each variety of flower has a particular type of nectar, the honey made from the nectar of that flower has a distinctive flavor. For example, honeybees that collect nectar exclusively from an orange grove will make orange-blossom honey. From a forest of sourwood trees, they will make sourwood honey. For a company to label a honey as a varietal, or single-source, honey, the product has to consist of 51 percent of that specific type of nectar. The remainder can be made from any other type of nectar from the same fields from which the original nectar was collected. Honeybees can be managed to forage in specific fields to gather nectar from a single source. Beekeepers know when certain flowers are blooming in their area and that their bees have a short window of time to work that particular nectar. Once the nectar flow has expired and the flowers have dropped, beekeepers quickly remove the honey supers from their hives to insure a single-floral-source honey.

BLENDED HONEY is what we find most commonly in our local grocery stores. It is honey from different floral sources blended together to create a pleasing flavor.