Nosema and Vets - BBKA News

[For want of a better word]

No one tells Bobby not to eat the apples, unless they suspect that he might if not given instructions to the contrary.

Bobby would probably get an upset tummy... the dishonest honey muddler would get a hefty fine!

 

[mbc]

No one tells Bobby not to eat the apples, unless they suspect that he might if not given instructions to the contrary.

Bobby would probably get an upset tummy... the dishonest honey muddler would get a hefty fine!

I had TS take a couple of pots of my honey for analysis, gladly all was as it should have been. I'm hardly a large scale producer, so I imagine those selling large quantities would get tested more frequently.

 

[masterBK]

What I think is funny is the chairman's piece urging beekeepers not to buy bulk foreign honey to bottle. Then there's an advert in the classifieds for bulk foreign honey.
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I believe the two are connected and that there is a strong suspicion out there in BBKA land that a few beekeepers are already doing this. Presumably the chairmans remarks are designed to warn people off such a practice. If a beekeeper gets prosecuted for selling imported honey as their own produce then the reporting of the incident could result in the public becoming reluctant to pay a premium for local honey if they think they are being fobbed off with the foreign stuff.

 

[Chris B]

What I think is funny is the chairman's piece urging beekeepers not to buy bulk foreign honey to bottle. Then there's an advert in the classifieds for bulk foreign honey.
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I believe the two are connected and that there is a strong suspicion out there in BBKA land that a few beekeepers are already doing this. Presumably the chairmans remarks are designed to warn people off such a practice. If a beekeeper gets prosecuted for selling imported honey as their own produce then the reporting of the incident could result in the public becoming reluctant to pay a premium for local honey if they think they are being fobbed off with the foreign stuff.

What I have seen is beekeepers at farmers markets and elsewhere with honey labelled as "produce of EU" on a quaint homemadey sort of label that gives the impression it's their own honey. They aren't breaking the law. They aren't even breaking farmers markets rules because they also sell other stuff like cakes, so they can use the primary/secondary producer loophole. It's deceiving the public though and doing the rest of us a disservice.

Not that I'm against foreign honey at all. I like the diversity and have all my friends and relatives bring me samples from their hols. You can't beat proper Italian chestnut, except maybe heather.

 

[UEAHoneyBeeMan]

I had TS take a couple of pots of my honey for analysis, gladly all was as it should have been. I'm hardly a large scale producer, so I imagine those selling large quantities would get tested more frequently.

I had TS test my honey this year also and the report was fine. TS suggested that I submit a sample each year and retain the report as a kind of "Due Diligence" and best practice so that if anything ever happened I could show I was doing all I could to maintain high standards. Interestingly, he said that unless the honey producer is a new producer that comes to the attention of the TS, as I did in attending one of the local Farmers' Markets, it is down to the producer to regularly test and that they wouldn't be coming back to see me unless there was a problem!
I imagine that all larger honey producers send off samples regularly for testing, it's common sense really..........

 

[masterBK]

Quite often the actions of the TS are beekeeper led ie another local beekeeper has decided to shop you as he/she thinks that something about your honey is not right in their eyes or maybe just for spite (have you upset someone recently?) I believe that in Norfolk a few years ago a beekeeper was selling imported honey labelled as Norfolk honey leading to his prosecution. I once attended a court case a couple of decades ago where a beekeeper was caught selling honey labelled as heather when clearly it was not. Other instances have occurred where the jars were clearly under weight or the contents fermenting in an obvious way.

 

[UEAHoneyBeeMan]

Quite often the actions of the TS are beekeeper led ie another local beekeeper has decided to shop you as he/she thinks that something about your honey is not right in their eyes or maybe just for spite (have you upset someone recently?) I believe that in Norfolk a few years ago a beekeeper was selling imported honey labelled as Norfolk honey leading to his prosecution. I once attended a court case a couple of decades ago where a beekeeper was caught selling honey labelled as heather when clearly it was not. Other instances have occurred where the jars were clearly under weight or the contents fermenting in an obvious way.

I do my best to keep everyone happy!
The visit from TS was actually a very productvie one and far from being hostile they were very complimentary and helpful. I gave them a guided tour of my extraction and bottling process and keep pretty good records of where and when I sell my honey so they seemed happy enough.
I have heard of the "Norfolk Incident", from what I've been told they had a dozen hives and were selling honey by the lorry load so something didn't add up. The story is now entering folklore so may not be totally accurate, oh and I'm also an angler so the tale always gets a little bigger each time it's told

 

[m100]

I have heard of the "Norfolk Incident", from what I've been told they had a dozen hives and were selling honey by the lorry load so something didn't add up.

17.7 tons - or about 50000 12 oz jars

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1503781/Beekeeper-uncovered-scam-over-local-honey.htmlhttp://

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/norfolk/4955746.stm

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/couple-fined-for-selling-fake-honey-476027.html

 

[itma]

... from what I've been told they had a dozen hives and were selling honey by the lorry load so something didn't add up. ...

You mean that wasn't included in the BBKA production averages?