Selling honey from the hives in the UK

[BeeKeyPlayer]

... what storage conditions are likely to adversely affect honey ?

I think storing in the fridge accelerates granulation. Not an adverse affect, but an inconvenient one. On my labels I state to store at room temperature.

 

[magor]

what storage conditions are likely to adversely affect honey ?

air and humidity as internal conditions , so un open jar better consume soon after opend day, for sealed think no need a date

high temps and light as external circumstances, best is dark colored jar (but less commercial and more expensive) and unheated-raw honey but needs educated peepl that uniform granulation is a natural property of honey

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Why are we having this discussion?
Do the food regulations say honey needs storage instructions? NO
Do the honey regulations say honey needs storage instructions? NO
Do you need to put storage instructions on your labels? unless you're a total loonatic NO!

 

[BeeKeyPlayer]

... unless you're a total loonatic NO!

That's me, then. When I saw a family member storing my honey in their fridge and the crystallisation that happened quickly, I decided to put 'store at room temperature' on my labels.

 

[PeaBee]

Honey Regs give pretty clear guidance on what constitutes honey is and isn't and what can be called honey, they do not exempt it from the requirements of the labelling / Food Information to Customers regs. Retained Reg 1169/11 says that any food intended for supply to the final consumer or to mass caterers shall be accompanied by food information in accordance with this Regulation .
The requirements include putting weight/mass, BBE, country of origin etc. It also has the the requirement for any special storage instructions to be included. But does honey have any special storage requirements? will it degrade or become unfit if stored in non-special conditions? So there is no need to put any info about storage conditions on the label.
When thinking of the reuse glass jars, the manufacturers seem quite clear that they are manufactured for single use (see poots post). The responsibility is then on individual who decides to reuse them to ensure they are safe, no one is going to tell you you can or can not. If something goes wrong and results in a complaint to either Env Health or Trading standards (safety or quality issues from cracks or chips in the glass) they will look to see if you did due diligence and what procedures are in place. Using container outside of the manufactures guidelines would be difficult to justify. This would be the worst case scenario and the chances of the jars failing probably quite low (but you don't necessarily know how the jars have been treated when out of your control). And if you are just doing honey for friends and family they will probably not report it. But if you are selling to the public is it worth it? There is no jar police out there who will tell you not to so its up to you to decide if you want to reuse jars or not and what control measure you have in place to check they are safe.

Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011​

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Honey Regs give pretty clear guidance on what constitutes honey is and isn't and what can be called honey, they do not exempt it from the requirements of the labelling / Food Information to Customers regs. Retained Reg 1169/11 says that any food intended for supply to the final consumer or to mass caterers shall be accompanied by food information in accordance with this Regulation .
The requirements include putting weight/mass, BBE, country of origin etc. It also has the the requirement for any special storage instructions to be included. But does honey have any special storage requirements? will it degrade or become unfit if stored in non-special conditions? So there is no need to put any info about storage conditions on the label.
When thinking of the reuse glass jars, the manufacturers seem quite clear that they are manufactured for single use (see poots post). The responsibility is then on individual who decides to reuse them to ensure they are safe, no one is going to tell you you can or can not. If something goes wrong and results in a complaint to either Env Health or Trading standards (safety or quality issues from cracks or chips in the glass) they will look to see if you did due diligence and what procedures are in place. Using container outside of the manufactures guidelines would be difficult to justify. This would be the worst case scenario and the chances of the jars failing probably quite low (but you don't necessarily know how the jars have been treated when out of your control). And if you are just doing honey for friends and family they will probably not report it. But if you are selling to the public is it worth it? There is no jar police out there who will tell you not to so its up to you to decide if you want to reuse jars or not and what control measure you have in place to check they are safe.

Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011​

How would anyone know if the jar had been reused? Even if there's a manufacture code on the glass it's quite possible to be old but unused stock. This is descending into discussing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. Let's not even include whether the dance is ballroom or boogie woogie.

 

[PeaBee]

How would anyone know if the jar had been reused? Even if there's a manufacture code on the glass it's quite possible to be old but unused stock. This is descending into discussing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. Let's not even include whether the dance is ballroom or boogie woogie.

If investigating a food safety complaint regarding packaging the officers would ask for invoices etc for the packaging and would look to see if they are correct for the use etc, so if you had invoices for new jars and were prepared to lie they would not. Like I said before no one is going to check on it unless something go wrong. then it is is up to the food producer to provide evidence of compliance.

 

[Jimmy]

.. what storage conditions are likely to adversely affect honey ?

A farm shop that sells my soft set honey stacked it on a shelf next to a freezer unit, right next to the heat exchanger. No problem until the recent heat wave but it's no longer soft set, more a cloudy clear honey at the top and a viscous set honey underneath. The jars felt warm even at an ambient temperature of 30°C. Next year I think I will only supply clear honey during the summer, it out sells set by a good margin.
All in new jars, obviously.

 

[JamezF]

A farm shop that sells my soft set honey stacked it on a shelf next to a freezer unit. No problem until the recent heat wave but it's no longer soft set, more a cloudy clear honey at the top and a viscous set honey underneath. The jars felt warm even at an ambient temperature of 30°C. Next year I think I will only supply clear honey during the summer, it out sells set by a good margin.
All in new jars, obviously.

Given the totally random nature of our weather, next summer we'll probably have three feet of snow.

James

 

[Skinfaxi]

Given the totally random nature of our weather, next summer we'll probably have three feet of snow.

James

Yes last year was windy rainy and very cold . Almoat justvwinter all year..No honey sad sad sad.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Yes last year was windy rainy and very cold . Almoat justvwinter all year..No honey sad sad sad.

Very little for me last year which is why I'm keeping a bit of this year's crop back for next year

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

strange, last year was a pretty good year for me
Not a patch on this year though.

 

[Erichalfbee]

strange, last year was a pretty good year for me
Not a patch on this year though.

I remember you saying. It rained practically all year just a few miles north of you. The Aeron Valley can be quite peculiar that way

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

The Aeron Valley can be quite peculiar that way

The Aeron valley is peculiar in many a way!