Goolsbymd
Well-Known Member
I know it will vary by area, however for 16lbs of wildflower honey from a local beekeeper I am being quoted $10/lbs. $160 for 16lbs of raw honey. Seems quite high to me but then again i have only made (1) 1gal batch.
Price of honey question
- Thread starter Goolsbymd
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I don't particularly keep up with the local price of honey, but I have seen a local guy advertising 5gallon buckets (approximately 60lbs) of local honey for $300 and even that seems high to me. Heck, I have seen local honey in the grocery store for right around $5-$6/lb in 1lb containers.
botigol
Well-Known Member
I know that honey is expensive, but $10/lb is too much in my book. Check Ebay for comparisons; many are much lower and include shipping.
our local honey for bulk price just went to 3.50 a lb and that's too high for me. You can get a gallon (12 lbs) of nice fancy (orange, snow berry) honey online for like 50 - 60 shipped. Im all for supporting local but not for those prices.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-Gallon-of...226?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a3eb6267a
Raw real honey at a fair price. thats $5 / lb shipped and im guessing its far better stuff than the local wildflower honey.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-Gallon-of...226?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a3eb6267a
Raw real honey at a fair price. thats $5 / lb shipped and im guessing its far better stuff than the local wildflower honey.
The National Honey Board publishes the average retail and wholesale prices in the Industry section of their site. Currently retail is around $6.30/pound. That includes all types and package sizes. I thought that was crazy until visiting the Madison farmer's market and seeing people getting $7-8. Costs have gone up dramatically with bee health problems in recent years.
At $16/pound it must be some uncommon single flower source honey. You should be able find wild flower honey in bulk for much cheaper.
At $16/pound it must be some uncommon single flower source honey. You should be able find wild flower honey in bulk for much cheaper.
OP
OP
Goolsbymd
Well-Known Member
Thanks, that is was I was thinking. I saw online the 5gallon pails for about half the cost, but wasn't sure due to being local.
flars
Well-Known Member
Ten dollars a pound for organic honey is about right.
Just back from the store and saw buckwheat honey for just under $9/lb. That is the highest I have ever seen honey for in the store. Also saw $2.99/12 oz on pure honey which comes out to just under $4/lb right next to it. Farmers market last week two different booths and one had it for $5/lb and the other for $4/lb. I would keep looking. Unless the honey is something special, made from some rare flower, I would guess the seller is just going with whatever the market will bear. Let him sell to some other sucker.
I just purchased 15lbs of local Orange Blossom honey from a farmers market for $75 ($5/lb), the Wildflower and Clover was even cheaper. Definitely shop around locally and you can find a better price, and it never hurts to negotiate a bit.
You can do much better than that. Dutch GOld with shipping is way less than half. The Bee Folks are not that far from you and have some of the best honey and varieties you can find anywhere for about half that price. Happy hunting and good luck on yoursecond batch!
The10mmKid
Well-Known Member
Less than $5 delivered to your doorstep.
http://www.ebeehoney.com/wildflower_honey_gallon.html
'da Kid
http://www.ebeehoney.com/wildflower_honey_gallon.html
'da Kid
This winter killed a lot of hives, this isnt oil where the price is fixed artificially, there are less bees and people were and still are scrambling to reestablish lost hives. Keep whining, another bad winter back to back is going to make it even worse. If you are serious about making mead establish a relationship with a local beekeepers group to get to know your sources, you might even teach a beek how to make mead while they give you a honey education. BEEK WVMJ
JINKS
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How the hell does one make organic honey?
gratus fermentatio
Well-Known Member
The average in retail stores here in MT is about $3 per lb for either wildflower or clover honey. I can get wildflower honey in bulk (33lbs or more) from the lcl hippie store for $1.79 per lb. There is no way I'd pay $10 per lb for wildflower honey.
You can get good quality varietal honey in bulk (60lbs) for under $5 per lb. Of course you have to pay for shipping, but at least you get a varietal instead of "mystery honey".
Regards, GF.
One makes claims that cause the price to go up by anther $2 per pound...
Seriously, though, I figure anyone claiming they have any control over where their bees go to gather, is pretty much FOS (that is Full Of ..it).
They will go as far as 25 miles (Per a Doctoral level entomologist that spoke at the Bee Club meeting) to get a different source than what they have right in front of them, and know well enough that while there is a 'good' source, that they must also look for the 'next' source of nectar all the time. Bee's rock!
Easy and local is where they start, but other than keeping bees inside a sealed greenhouse, there is no telling where or what they have been to.
TeeJo(two hives in the yard now!)
One makes claims that cause the price to go up by anther $2 per pound...
Seriously, though, I figure anyone claiming they have any control over where their bees go to gather, is pretty much FOS (that is Full Of ..it).
They will go as far as 25 miles (Per a Doctoral level entomologist that spoke at the Bee Club meeting) to get a different source than what they have right in front of them, and know well enough that while there is a 'good' source, that they must also look for the 'next' source of nectar all the time. Bee's rock!
Easy and local is where they start, but other than keeping bees inside a sealed greenhouse, there is no telling where or what they have been to.
TeeJo(two hives in the yard now!)
Yea that was my thought, unless someone owns just hundreds and hundreds of acres of some organic orchard or something and puts hives right in the center I see no way how they could make the claim.
kgx2
Well-Known Member
Go to the source whenever possible. Got 12lbs raw Wildflower today from a local honey farm For $30. LHBS stocks his stuff and wanted $62 for the same size. Shop and dig around and you'll find better deals. Even got $5 off cause I belonged to a brew club so don't forget to tell them what your using it for.
https://www.dutchgoldhoney.com/store/organic/Organic-Honey
"Our USDA certified Organic Honey is produced by organic certified beehives. These special beehives are located in remote regions of Brazil where the honey bees can forage for nectar from various wildflowers, that are free from herbicide or pesticide applications."
That's what I've bought at down here. $30/gallon. A gallon is about 13 lbs.
I've been quoted $1.55 per pound of orange blossom if I am open to buying a barrel, which is 600 lbs. That is a lot of mead.
noblesquirrel
Well-Known Member
It's impossible to be certified organic honey in the US, for the record. The only place that it is available and certified is the amazon rain forest. Plenty of folks are selling "organic" honey, but it's pretty much meaningless.
noblesquirrel
Well-Known Member
Out of curiosity, who quoted that to you? I may be interested...
As an aside, $10/lb is not really worth it unless it's super rare. Even with the mediocre tupelo harvest this year, I got some at $7.50/lb, shipped. My macadamia nut honey was a bit more, coming from Hawaii at ~$8/lb. My bulk honey, which I get from the keeper, raw and barely filtered was $130 for 60lbs and it's absolutely fantastic stuff. Shop around and make friends and you'll eventually get what you need.
wildozarkwine
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Costco in St. Louis has clover honey for $12 for 5lb
I'm in Wisconsin, but I never pay more than $3.00/lb. for local honey.
Our farmers' markets usually run about $9-$15 a pound.
Contact your local apiaries and see if you can buy in bulk.
One organic food co-op here charges $4.50 a pound, but if you call the apiary directly, they only charge $3.00 for the exact same honey. Most places will offer a discount for a 5 gallon bucket.
The local Brew and Grow shop charges $7.00. Avoid retail whenever possible.
Our farmers' markets usually run about $9-$15 a pound.
Contact your local apiaries and see if you can buy in bulk.
One organic food co-op here charges $4.50 a pound, but if you call the apiary directly, they only charge $3.00 for the exact same honey. Most places will offer a discount for a 5 gallon bucket.
The local Brew and Grow shop charges $7.00. Avoid retail whenever possible.
Blademaker
Active Member
I buy wildflower honey from a local sunday school teacher lady.
$42 a gallon.
$42 a gallon.
NZ-beekeeper
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Become a beekeeper! You'll be helping the plight of bees, plus at around $300 (New Zealand Dollars, and trust me, we get ripped off compared to all you punters in the USA) for a hive, which might yield 50-100KG (100-200lbs PER YEAR). The first year will probably not pay off, especially when you factor in the other gear, but after that, you get honey at quite an affordable monetary cost, and you will have an everlasting supply of free bees, provided you don't kill them. You can even sell your swarms and splits. My hives would pretty much pay for themselves each time I make a 23L (5gal) batch, plus I sell honey for $8NZD for 500g, about $5-6USD/lb. Plus you get to eat honey on your toast in the morning, and you know EXACTLY how much or little it has been fettered with.
I got into mead making with a little help from my hard working girls (yes, worker bees are all female), but there is no reason why your affinity to the golden brew shouldn't take you into another very interesting and absorbing hobby.:beard:
I got into mead making with a little help from my hard working girls (yes, worker bees are all female), but there is no reason why your affinity to the golden brew shouldn't take you into another very interesting and absorbing hobby.:beard:
Dominic1920
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NZ-beekeeper, There are some crop pollination companies here in Imperial Valley California. I see alot of hives around where they grow lemons, naval oranges and grapefruit, but the main crop here is alfalfa, which they pollinate with some other type of bee in trailers. The trailers around the alfalfa are filled with trays in racks, each tray has hundreds of little holes in them. I was wondering how the business works. I know that the beekeepers rent their hives out for pollinating crops, but is they honey a side business? Is it harvested by the beekeepers and sold or does the honey not get harvested. I heard that some of the crops dont produce alot of honey and that the beekeepers have to supplement feed the hives.
noblesquirrel
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I wouldn't want honey from a beekeeper that supplement's the hives. He's probably also willing to take an 80% death rate shipping bees all over the country. The best apiaries, imo, are the ones that leave enough honey behind for the bees to eat and keep them healthy/happy.
billingsbrew
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Wow I bought 4-12 pound buckets earlier this year for $33 a bucket. It was local clover honey here in Montana. The last two I just bought, the price had increased to $35. I guess I won't complain!
NZ-beekeeper
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Alfalfa is quite a unique crop, in that it is actually not pollinated by honeybees. They use a bee call the lucerne (or alfalfa) leafcutter bee, which is a solitary bee, and make their nests in holes in the ground, in trees, or in the holes provided by the crate you mentioned. Solitary bees (including bumblebees and leafcutters) make honey, but the quantity is so tiny you wouldn't even know. Only honeybees produce it in excess. I know a beekeeper where honey is only a sideline. He doesn't do pollination either, but makes a comfortable living selling the bees themselves. You are dead right about some crops not producing much nectar. Here in NZ where a lot of kiwifruit is grown (kiwis to some, but that word already means 2 different things here besides the fruit!), there is quite a problem. The kiwifruit flowers (both male and female) produce NO nectar, so in the big monocrop farms, ALL the hives are fed cane sugar syrup, or invert syrup. Those in the pollination business usually do it for 2 reasons...it brings in WAAAY more money than selling honey, and there is less faffing around with honey equipment, storage, council regulations, food safety, processing plants, marketing costs, etc. You just have your bees, your truck, and some knowhow. Perhaps some seasonal farm hands for the busy time.
In my opinion, and from the bees' perspective, multiflora, or 'wildflower' honey is the way to go. Your varietals will often be from monoculture farms, except in the case of wild 'monoculture' eg. fireweed, which by the way, bay well be able to be called "organic". I have been to Alaska and seen the fireweed first hand. That is remote stuff up there, no chemicals, but bears etc, and not many bees/keepers (probably too cold and dark over winter). For Manuka honey, for it to be called monofloral, it needs 70% manuka, for others I believe 60% purity is enough.
Multifloral honey is a bit of a gamble for flavour and quality, but can make great mead, and is generally cheaper. I find with mead, it is normally the smell of the beehive that comes through in the final product, rather than the smell of the actual honey. In fact, mead actually tastes like the smell of a healthy hive. For this reason, I am dying to try putting a big glob of propolis into secondary for a batch (may have to be in a disposable vessel...propolis is some sticky S!!!!T).
NZ-beekeeper
Well-Known Member
True too. Shipping bees ain't good for them, but even without it, beekeepers have reported up to 70% loss, especially in USA and Europe. They have yet to find the actual reason. I really can't stress the benefits of keeping your own bees, if you have the time and desire. Honestly, it makes honey much cheaper. I wouldn't be able to afford to brew mead without my busy girls.
Roadie
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I called around to some local keepers in my area and the cheapest I could find was clover honey for $38 a gallon. Thinking about doing my first mead yet this year.
Dominic1920
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I have seen bees gathering caulking from around windows and doors here in the desert. Maybe because of the lack of resin producing trees. From what I know, propolis is used to seal gaps in the hive, why not use caulking? Thats exactly what we use it for. Honey bees are amazing creatures.
