“A Word On Certification”
We are asked frequently about certification and I will do my best to explain our position in relation to certification here. Having set up the beekeeping business only 5 years ago allowed us to establish our operation focusing on producing organic honey.
We are only paperwork and fees away from certifying our honey. When trying to find a market for our organic honey we quickly found that the consumption volumes of certified honey in our area was well below the volumes of honey that we produce. Therefore we are in the position that the majority of our 80 – 100 tons of honey we produce will have to be sold on the open commercial market.
This puts us in the position that we must compete with other honey producers in our area at commercial rates. This means we must remain competitive on price and not certify our honey. The cost of certification and administration records would put the price of our honey out of reach for the average customer.
What we did not count on is the fact that organic hives produce consistently very high volumes of honey. Typically in excess of 30 – 50% more than your average commercially run bee hive that has been exposed to disease and then medication. We are at times overwhelmed by the volumes of honey coming in off only 200 bee hives. We are on track this financial year to produce over 400kgs of honey from each hive.
It is a well-known fact that a bee hive run organically will produce more honey than a disease exposed heavily medicated hive. Unfortunately an organically run hive may take up to twice as long to reach full production because it must be given time to build up an immunity to the pests and diseases that a bee hive experiences throughout its life.
Our small boutique honey producing business is at this stage now. We have come a long way but we have a long way to go and intend to expand aggressively over the next couple of years.
We appreciate your support and we have every confidence in each jar that is sold, that you will enjoy it to the last drop.
