Cost of sugar or fondant 2022

Beekeeping & Apiculture Forum

Help Support Beekeeping & Apiculture Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I pay £15.50 for a 25k bag of granulated sugar at Bookers the wholesalers. If you don't have a Bookers card, take proof of BBKA membership - they like to support beekeepers and will issue you with a card. They'll also carry the bag to your car for you.
 
Just a word of caution on buying bulk from supermarkets, I recently had a "dust-off" with Aldi over buying bulk qtys. The checkout lady, when I got to the till, insisted I was buying in bulk which, is against company policy, so I asked her to explain what the company policy was and what constituted "bulk" on several occasions. She couldn't explain only saying I should leave some for other customers. Which I did. She also said buying in this now mystical definition of "bulk" was screwing up her company figures!

I decided to take it up with Head office. This took weeks to try and bottom out and essentially, once they worked out I was not going away, they ran out the same incomprehensible drivel on their "bulk purchase Policy". They refused to give me a definition of "bulk" and to keep it simple for them, I said look, 6 boxes of X product on the shelf, I buy 4. Does that constitute "Bulk"? or if there is 3 boxes of X on the shelf I buy 2 cos that's what I need, is that bulk and you will refuse to sell me my requirements? Silence!

Just to consolidate the point I did ask if I was to purchase 3 boxes of the 6 on the shelf, go thro the checkout, put said boxes in car and then re-enter the store and purchase the remaining 3 boxes does that constitute "Bulk"??

No answer. Aldi really has gone down in my expectations and made themselves look complete fools in fact I haven't been back since.

So what, in times of high inflation, food shortages and a mystical bulk buy policy by Aldi, that cannot be defined even by the company themselves, means you be careful folks where you buy your sugar from for the coming winter. You just might get to the checkout and be told you cant buy it as your purchase could be considered as bulk buying which, they have this mystical policy for. But they can't tell you what it is nor will they help you understand what it is.
They did this to my partner in Lidls.
I think it also depends who is on the till.
 
Your local 'cash and carry' might do you better bulk deals than the supermarkets. They might also stock fondant or sugar paste (read the ingredients before you buy though). Bako is the brand we know over here.

My local Association in West Wales always used to get bags of sugar from their local Farm Foods who at the time were more than happy for you to buy in bulk to the extent of giving you a sheet of vouchers with greater discounts the more you bought.

You might also look on eBay, a lot of the suppliers there include NI in the UK so will ship although expect a bit of an increase in the postal rate. I checked a few using a postcode of BT1 1AA and there weren't too larger increases.
I have a Bookers cash and carry card.
Get my Bee sugar from there.
No problems with bulk purchases .
 
I have a Bookers cash and carry card.
Get my Bee sugar from there.
No problems with bulk purchases .
So do I but Aldi is half a mile away and Bookers is 8 each way hence I went to Aldi.
 
I put 1/2 bag in a 25ltr bucket add 8ltrs of warm water and whisk with a paint stirrer on a drill. i have 4 set up ata time and walk from 1 bucket to the next stirring until the sugar is dissolved. I then decant into drums. I normally do about a 100kg at a time.
I'm doing it for 2 teaching apiaries this year.

I was going to do it in a 100lt tank and a pump but not got around to it yet!
Good luck with the pump Neil, let me know how you get on. We've looked and its a huge cost
 
I can supply bulk granulated sugar occasionally. I have some at the moment at £12.50 per 25kg.
North Staffordshire
Whats the carriage likely to be to my Parish?
 
Whats the carriage likely to be to my Parish?
I’m not sure, I’ve never posted any before, it’s all been picked up by locals. I suspect it would push the cost above supermarket per kg price. It’s quite a cheap commodity really. Considering the value of a good hive and of honey compared to processed sugar it’s not a lot to keep them alive over winter.
 
I’m not sure, I’ve never posted any before, it’s all been picked up by locals. I suspect it would push the cost above supermarket per kg price. It’s quite a cheap commodity really. Considering the value of a good hive and of honey compared to processed sugar it’s not a lot to keep them alive over winter.
Agreed that's why I've been using it for a decade. But the amount we need, the cost difference soon adds up
 
I gave up and ordered of Simon the beekeeper as it was free shipping.


Just found a place called Andrew’s in lisburn that do 12.5kg fondant for £10.90. Much cheaper than anywhere I found online
 
It's interesting how we end up spending an hour or two of our lives every year looking for the cheapest sugar outlet in the hope of saving a few pence.
Then give our honey away at silly prices.
I buy my sugar throughout the year. One bag with each weekly grocery shop soon adds up.
 
My local Tesco has recently stopped stocking 5kg bags and this morning there was a docket on the 2kg shelf saying it was discontinued. The thought of dealing solely with 1kg bags might be the nudge I need to look at bought in syrup or fondant.. When I last investigated Bako they wanted me to join at great cost and the local independent bakers are not conveniently local.
 
My local Tesco has recently stopped stocking 5kg bags and this morning there was a docket on the 2kg shelf saying it was discontinued. The thought of dealing solely with 1kg bags might be the nudge I need to look at bought in syrup or fondant.. When I last investigated Bako they wanted me to join at great cost and the local independent bakers are not conveniently local.
It cost me nothing to sign up with Bako. They were definitely the cheapest for fondant (not sugar) and delivered for free to my doorstep provided I ordered £150.
 
It cost me nothing to sign up with Bako. They were definitely the cheapest for fondant (not sugar) and delivered for free to my doorstep provided I ordered £150.
It was Bako Western who cover where I live (Warwickshire) and there is a £100 membership fee and according to their website 'Membership is only granted to Master Bakers or a trade closely affiliated to the bakery trade.'
There are a couple of small scale commercial bakers operating out of some industrial units nearby that I think I'll investigate.
 
It was Bako Western who cover where I live (Warwickshire) and there is a £100 membership fee and according to their website 'Membership is only granted to Master Bakers or a trade closely affiliated to the bakery trade.'
There are a couple of small scale commercial bakers operating out of some industrial units nearby that I think I'll investigate.
I would find out who the local rep is and have a chat with him. If you say you are a beekeeper and buy a reasonable quantity I’m sure they would waive the membership fee. After all they just want to sell stuff!
 
Bookers for me too. They will give you a card if you say you are a beekeeper. Not always the cheapest but they do good offers on 25kg bags sometimes.
 
I use Costco who are at 55p/kg in 25kg bags. It has been this price for a while now. They do not do fondant unfortunately. It is beet sugar, but the bees do not seem to mind...
 
It is beet sugar, but the bees do not seem to mind...
why should they? why should we obsess about cane sugar which has a massive carbon footprint and whose production has dubious environmental credentials
 
Finlays foods just outside Maghaberry is where I buy my sugar, they were cheaper for Fodant than Andrews in Lisburn last time I checked and they also do the bee branded stuff as well. First time I rang ordering the bakers stuff they were like do you keep bees as they knew by what I was ordering.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top