Hi to all,
More and more people are turning to organic products. In beekeeping, how do you define (or describe) organic honey? How do you price them per lb/oz...etc? compared to honey in the supermarket/stores? I've been selling my honey with higher price than the store. Consumer said, it's a little bit expensive but they like and buy it because it's pure honey. Is there any required range price for honey per size? Thank you very much for your inputs.
Some states have an "organic program" where they define AND certify what is or is not organic. The USDA is still hashing out the legal requirements for them to certify honey as organic.
I think you have to be careful not to just put the "organic" label on it. I would just state, breifly, what you do and don't do raising your bees. For example "This honey is raised without pesticides, antibiotics, essential oils..." whatever it is you don't use, or whatever you'd like to specify that you do use.
There is one organic producer in our province. He has his hives in a field, surrounded on all sides by hectares of swamp, forest and his clover fields.
There is no other planted floral source for the bees to collect from save his, and mother natures. It still took him 5 years to get his certification, but now he can charge 5 bucks a pound to the granola heads.
sweet set up.......
Unfortunately unlike beef, crops, etc. One can't easily just decide to change methods and make organic honey. The requirements I've seen (if you can find a body that will certify it), pretty much exclude any human activity in the forage area, the use of commercially produced wax foundation, any plastic in the hive and the one I read even didn't allow the queen to be clipped.
Some of it doesn't make much sense to me (disallowing plastic and clipping). Though the limitation on foraging areas make it pretty much impossible in any inhabited area, which eliminates any possibility of certified organic honey where I'm at.
I'd go with Michael's suggestion on this one. That's basically what i do.