Supplying honey in bulk ?

[ericbeaumont]

They sell it on for £6.50 and it’s been flying off their shelves.

It might be better if they were to flutter occasionally off the shelves.

Shops prefer to have continual supply and there are two ways to achieve that: have stock to supply until your next crop, or pitch prices (both parties) to put the brake on sales.

I reckon it's better to sell slowly over a longer period and build a market (if that's what you want to do). If not, there's nothing wrong with supplying a seasonal product for a short period, but make sure you make the most of it: you've achieved a decent price but speed of sales suggests demand will tolerate a rise; perhaps next year sell to them at £4.75.

Selling slower at a higher price has the same result (its gone) as selling cheaper and quicker but the first route has raised not just your return but the perception of value of the product in the mind of the customer. This unseen bonus supports all beekeepers in the long-term, and it's worth remembering that whether a beekeeper sells six jars or six thousand we share the same marketplace.

What is certain is that since C19 local produce and local supply chains are seen by consumers to offer reassurance, and we must treasure and nurture that factor. One way to differentiate our product from the dodgy or the factory product is to use clear and unambiguous labelling that locates the product to the area of production, links it to the beekeeper, and maintains a higher price.

There are two sorts of customers: the one who wants cheap and doesn't care about quality, and those that care about quality and provenance and are prepared to pay for it. The second is our sort and we must be clear where our market lies.

 

[ericbeaumont]

When I manage to produce some comb honey I was thinking of selling it to the outlets for 3.5p per gram net weight....is this too cheap?

Difficult to really know, but I sell 227 Ross Rounds at £9, which is 3.96/g. Will probably go up to £11 this year as I have heather RRs.

Although no-one in London has a clue about heather they buy it on taste or because it's a niche product priced accordingly. A higher price often attracts sales and comb honey is a feel-good product that appeals the nearer we get to Christmas.

 

[Arfermo]

mostly sold at my front door using the 'Nextdoor' website and would never expect less that £5 for 454gr (1 lb), the rest is gifted to family/friends - and the bees when I am feeling generous. 'Nextdoor' is amazing and nothing like any of the effing useless social networking junk.

 

[Speybee]

Difficult to really know, but I sell 227 Ross Rounds at £9, which is 3.96/g. Will probably go up to £11 this year as I have heather RRs.

Although no-one in London has a clue about heather they buy it on taste or because it's a niche product priced accordingly. A higher price often attracts sales and comb honey is a feel-good product that appeals the nearer we get to Christmas.

I have ordered that honey comb book you recommended and looked at a couple of the Ross round videos on you tube, so a lot of new info to assimilate.
Thanks for the recommendations and your advice ref Heather honey.

 

[Speybee]

mostly sold at my front door using the 'Nextdoor' website and would never expect less that £5 for 454gr (1 lb), the rest is gifted to family/friends - and the bees when I am feeling generous. 'Nextdoor' is amazing and nothing like any of the effing useless social networking junk.

I don’t use Aff YerFace book but thanks for sharing Next door

 

[Speybee]

It might be better if they were to flutter occasionally off the shelves.

Shops prefer to have continual supply and there are two ways to achieve that: have stock to supply until your next crop, or pitch prices (both parties) to put the brake on sales.

I reckon it's better to sell slowly over a longer period and build a market (if that's what you want to do). If not, there's nothing wrong with supplying a seasonal product for a short period, but make sure you make the most of it: you've achieved a decent price but speed of sales suggests demand will tolerate a rise; perhaps next year sell to them at £4.75.

Selling slower at a higher price has the same result (its gone) as selling cheaper and quicker but the first route has raised not just your return but the perception of value of the product in the mind of the customer. This unseen bonus supports all beekeepers in the long-term, and it's worth remembering that whether a beekeeper sells six jars or six thousand we share the same marketplace.

What is certain is that since C19 local produce and local supply chains are seen by consumers to offer reassurance, and we must treasure and nurture that factor. One way to differentiate our product from the dodgy or the factory product is to use clear and unambiguous labelling that locates the product to the area of production, links it to the beekeeper, and maintains a higher price.

There are two sorts of customers: the one who wants cheap and doesn't care about quality, and those that care about quality and provenance and are prepared to pay for it. The second is our sort and we must be clear where our market lies.

As someone who spent most of her 3 plus decades working life in a retail type environment, you and I are not only on the same page.....we have got the same book
Thanks again for sharing your experience in the Heather honey Department ...really helpful

 

[ericbeaumont]

As someone who spent most of her 3 plus decades working life in a retail type environment, you and I are not only on the same page.....we have got the same book
Thanks again for sharing your experience in the Heather honey Department ...really helpful

Blimey, that's a useful background! I just make it up as I go along!

 

[Speybee]

Blimey, that's a useful background! I just make it up as I go along!

Who would ever have thought?

 

[bobba]

My pal in Fife told me yesterday that some are “importing” honey in their suitcase from a visit home in places in the Eastern bloc.
Apparently they add 30% locally produced honey to this “imported” honey and then jar it up and label as Local Honey, produced in Fife....surely this is the route to hell in a handcart?

In my area, Facebook market is awash with honey from our European friends. From what I have seen, they don't bother trying to tout it as local, most say where it is from, or just have a bunch of unlabelled jars and make no claims of province.

 

[Speybee]

How can it be local if there is only 30% local honey in it?
The way she was talking about it, it was legal?
Sounds a bit like honey laundering as the proportion of local honey is only around a third.

 

[fiat500bee]

Sounds a bit like honey laundering as the proportion of local honey is only around a third.

"honey laundering" ....I like that.

 

[ericbeaumont]

How can it be local if there is only 30% local honey in it?
The way she was talking about it, it was legal?

https://labellingtraining.food.gov.uk/module8/overview_1.htmlThe 'country of origin' is the country from which the product was wholly obtained or, if production involved more than one country, the country where the product last underwent substantial, economically justified processing.

 

[Speybee]

https://labellingtraining.food.gov.uk/module8/overview_1.htmlThe 'country of origin' is the country from which the product was wholly obtained or, if production involved more than one country, the country where the product last underwent substantial, economically justified processing.

Thanks for that link, it’s helpful.
Therefore at the proportion of 70%, Polish honey, it is stretching the imagination somewhat? labelling it Local Honey ..... certainly local to Poland but definitely not local to Fife, Scotland.

But the get out clause/ small print, appears to be, contained in the phrase “...the country where the product underwent substantial, economically justified processing”.
So it is legal then........this honey laundering.

 

[Newbeeneil]

Therefore at the proportion of 70%, Polish honey, it is stretching the imagination somewhat? labelling it Local Honey ..... certainly local to Poland but definitely not local to Fife, Scotland.

But the get out clause/ small print, appears to be, contained in the phrase “...the country where the product underwent substantial, economically justified processing”.

And the justification being a substantially high price!

 

[Speybee]

And the justification being a substantially high price!

Disappointingly it appears so.

What my friend was telling me seemed initially to be bizarre, that a blended product, bulked out with the majority of produce from another country, hitches a ride, gets relabelled and parasitically takes on the reputation of a superior product, normally produced locally in Fife, Scotland.
Definitely another “industry” well on the way to hell in a handcart.

 

[mdotb]

Irrespective of the content of FSA e-courses, there is a Statutory Instrument which applies in this case, the Honey (Scotland) Regulations 2015, of which Article 16 States:
"No person may trade in honey unless the country or countries of origin where the honey has been harvested is indicated on the label..."

(An identical clause also applies in England, but since the poster reported this in Fife, I am assuming it is believed to be happening in Scotland).

So the practice as described above is not legitimate unless they state the countries (or the "EU" bit as currently allowed). There is no definition of "Local" within the labelling regulations.

(Or perhaps they are bringing whole hives over in suitcases and harvesting "locally"?)

 

[wavey100]

Well done on the price but no chance of that in my area . We supply nearly all 340g jars. Spring honey and summer both wholesale into shops at £3.80 heather is more expensive although we have none this year. Retail for shops ranges from £4.80 -£6 people just wouldn’t pay/can’t afford anymore

 

[mdotb]

Article 16 Clause 4 may also be relevant:
(4) The product name of a relevant honey may be supplemented by information relating to its regional, territorial or topographical origin but no person may trade in a relevant honey for which such supplemental information is provided unless the product comes entirely from the indicated origin.

This still doesn't overcome the question of how "local" is "local".

 

[ericbeaumont]

An identical clause also applies in England

Thanks for the reminder, M.B.
Here it is:
Additional labelling requirements 17.—(1) No person may trade in honey unless the country of origin where the honey has been harvested is indicated on the label except that, if the honey originates in more than one member State or third country, the countries of origin may be replaced with one of the following indications as appropriate— “blend of EU honeys”; “blend of non-EU honeys”; “blend of EU and non-EU honey".

And:
(3) The product name of a relevant honey may be supplemented by information relating to its floral or vegetable origin but no person may trade in a relevant honey for which such supplemental information is provided unless the product comes wholly or mainly from the indicated source and possesses the organoleptic, physico-chemical and microscopic characteristics of the source.

(4) The product name of a relevant honey may be supplemented by information relating to its regional, territorial or topographical origin but no person may trade in a relevant honey for which such supplemental information is provided unless the product comes entirely from the indicated origin.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

But the get out clause/ small print, appears to be, contained in the phrase “...the country where the product underwent substantial, economically justified processing”.
So it is legal then........this honey laundering.

Nope - you've been fed duff information