We shouldn't eat honey!

I rarely buy honey because I don't like the taste- never have.

I usually buy locally produced honey. DH eats it every day me only occasionally on Weetabix.

I didn’t realise this. So if we buy honey from a small-scale producer is that ok? I am a nature lover and very keen on environmental issues but I must admit I do get very confused about all the different types of bees.

Honey has been consumed by humans for millennia.

I wouuld imagine our best move is to plant our gardens with the flowers and trees that provide maximum resources for all kinds of bees and other pollinators. Then we are providing raw materials for the hive-living honey bees to make the honey that we buy in jars AND for the other types of bees to live on and thrive and multiply.

I have known Bee keepers who are careful to only extract some of the honey leaving plenty for the bees.

I do love local honey and our community store sells honey from the hives of about a dozen local beekeepers.

It's so expensive though that there's little danger of getting through many jars in a year
I add a spoonful to my salad dressing. There's another thing that's gone up in price - olive oil.
Seemingly we should give our hosts best olive oil rather than wine for a dinner party.

This may require some research unless someone knows more than me. I'd imagine a big commercial producer of honey is worse than a local beekeeper, but really I know nothing about it other than what I found on Google.

Here is a BBC podcast about honey:
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3ct6ssn

Maremia

Honey has been consumed by humans for millennia.

But not at the high commercial levels of today

Point taken

What next...

keepingquiet

I rarely buy honey because I don't like the taste- never have.

Bees (and other insects) are not competing for a scarce resource. There's no shortage of nectar and pollen even in city centres.

The bee rescuing season has started!
Sometimes I have rescued 10 or more in a day which find their way into the conservatory when the warm weather arrives.
A very large bumblebee came in yesterday and I carefully ejected him/her. Then he came back today. The third time he arrived at the open door, I'm sure he realised, turned round and left.

Much of our honey is imported and blended.
Chinese honey may not be all honey either so we should check that the honey we buy is from a reliable source.

As long as bees are left with sufficient supplies of honey to see them through the winter, that should be fine. However, it worries me when some beekeepers replace their honey supplies with sugar which does not have the nutrients they need.

This Guardian article from 2024 suggests widespread adulteration of commercially sold honey, though the results of analysis seem to be contested.

We had a friend's hive here for a few years and he gave us some of the pure honey from the hive.

I can't say I've noticed a decline in wild bees here since we had the 'tame' ones.

Sorry, forgot to post the link

www.theguardian.com/food/2024/nov/09/nine-in-ten-honey-samples-from-uk-retailers-fail-authenticity-test

I only buy local honey not commercially produced ones. I read that a lot of supermarket so called honeys are made in China from liquified sugar - yuck!

Clover honey and Acacia honey are just delicious 😋

I have my source of locally produced honey .
It's an important part of my diet.

I'm getting more fussy with my diet - I can't tolerate some foods anymore and other foods make me nauseated .
I don't want to end up like my mother,who was a nightmare to feed .

I live in a fairly rural area where there are several beekeepers to choose from. There is a discernible difference in taste and consistency from keeper to keeper even in a smallish area. I stir a little into Greek yogurt. I know it’s expensive but much better than supermarket “honey”.

OH is a beekeeper and sells his honey locally. It is delicious.

I like to buy local honey and, if anyone suffers from hayfever, it will, anecdotally, help alleviate symptoms.

I really don’t like honey but my family worry because I rarely eat anything sweet. My husband buys me very expensive honey from the Yemen and I have to say that it’s bearable with some Greek yoghurt but would much prefer a curry or chilli con carne.
My mum also worried about my lack of eating sugar. We lived in Trinidad for a while and went through the sugar cane fields. A beautiful sight and for me it’s a vegetable not something to dismiss.
Today I ate a Gu coffee caramel pudding but gave up after about four mouthful. It had no sugar and was tasteless.
My favourite pudding is golden syrup sponge and because I never eat sugar I smother it with golden syrup. When I go sweet I go really sweet.
Yemen honey is recommended by me if you’re a fan.

but my family worry because I rarely eat anything sweet

I don't think we need sugar or sweet foods and drinks.
You are probably getting all the sugars you need from fruits etc.

I'll take a bet your teeth are better than most people's of your age!

Don’t like honey, happy to leave it to the bees.

Unfortunately my mum, a lifelong, avid nature lover, has developed an incredibly sweet tooth as her dementia has progressed, 4 spoonfuls in every cup of tea or coffee. Don’t think I’ll be able to dissuade her 🥺

I won't buy cheap honey, it's now being imported from China and sold for less than a pound a jar by a certain supermarket known for its cheap prices. I buy mine from a local supplier, as I have allergies and just have a little each day, a jar that costs me 10.00 lasts me for ages. Won't buy cheap meat either, you can imagine how animals are treated to produce it, I would rather eat less meat and bulk it out with lentils or mixed beans or go veggie. I look at trolleys full of processed food and boxes of cakes and crisps, such a waste of money that could be spent on good food.