The United States has a relatively short history with honey. Honeybees were not to native to the country. The first hives were brought by ship to Virginia in 1622. The bees flourished and did remarkably well, spreading throughout the colonies and then, probably helped by the invention of the movable frame bee hive, to the west coast and beyond. Now, some of the finest honey in the world comes from the U. S.. The United States loves honey, it is the second largest consumer of honey after Germany.
National Honey Report – Produced monthly by the USDA – PDF
Honey prices, colony, honey plant and market conditions by state, US honey exports and imports
Honey Festivals: See crafts, entertainment and good food, along with honey, and bee displays and demos.
- West Virgina Honey Festival, Parkersburg, West Virgina, end of September
- Lithopolis Honeyfest, Lithopolis Ohio, mid September
- Minco Honey Festival, Minco, Oklahoma, early December
- Tupelo Honey Festival, Wewahitchka, Florida, third Saturday of May
- Palisade Honeybee Fest, Palisade, Colorado, mid April
Beekeeping Associations
Often a good source of information about local honey producers, festivals and events.
National and state level beekeeping associations
Developing A Standard of Identity For Honey In Your State:
Standard of Identity for Honey
United States Honey
- Texas-based Huney.net Raw Honey Varietals March 7, 2013 Hi, my name is Joely Rogers and I am the president of huney.net, LLC, an online honey store that showcases unique raw honey varietals from the regional United States. I formed my company in 2012 after falling in love with honey and honeybees during a nine-month apprenticeship with a former beekeeper who taught me how ...
- Indiana State Fair – A Palette of Honey September 16, 2012 Delicious local honey is usually found during a pleasant drive in the country to visit a local market or roadside stand. But honey found this way offers little diversity of flavor as it comes from within a limited area. I wondered if I could get a wider selection at a state fair. I decided to ...
- Honey Competiton at the Morton Arboretum September 13, 2012 Honey Competition in the Sequoia Room at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois, USA on October 7, 2010. Judged by Maggie Wachter of Senior Honey (on the right). Thirteen entries. The first batch judged was the light, then amber and dark honeys. Initial observations were written on cards for each entry. Once all criteria was measured, ...
- Harvesting Honey at the Fitzpatrick Farm – North Central Illinois November 19, 2011 Late in October, we were looking for a likely beekeeper to visit within an hour or two drive of home. Hopefully we would have a nice drive, visit the countryside and buy some fresh honey. I’d called Dan Fitzpatrick a few weeks earlier but wasn’t able to arrange anything at that time. This time Dan ...
- Senators Urge FDA to Adopt Honey Identity Standard August 10, 2011 As the latest champions in the ongoing action that began in 2006, U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and John Hoeven called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to implement a national standard of identity for honey. New York Senators Call for National Honey Identity Standard The American Beekeeping Federation, along with the American Honey Producers, National ...
- Local Wisconsin Farm Store Has a Honey Focus July 8, 2011 River Valley Kitchens Farm Store – Wisconsin
- A Short History of Honey in Wisconsin and a Honey of a Museum June 27, 2011 Serious honey production in Wisconsin began in the mid 1800’s, a short time after the state opened up to settlement. While there were some settlers in the early 1800’s, disputes over territory by the native Indians made life uneasy for them. This situation escalated until the Black Hawk war in 1832 ended the dispute and ...
- Searching for Honey in Manhattan October 4, 2010 Searching for the elusive Manhattan honey leads to the Union Square Market and the Fairway Market and a satisfying discovery of much honey.
I have delicious light raw unheated honey from my hives in Lemont, Il. The available forage is honeysuckle, honey locust, black locust, dandelion, linden among others. If you would like to sample or purchase, I can be reached @630-546-0497. Thanks, Herman.
Hi Herman:
I will look you up! Your honey sounds delicious. I give you a call in a week or two..
– Scott
Here is quite a good description of Top Honey Plants for Producing the Best Honey in the United States.
Hi~Scott!I want acquire some information about rain forest honey,espescially ulmo honey ,are there some classification on this kind of honey? like active 10+ that I saw ?Thank you !
Hi Sophia:
I was fortunate to be in Chile a couple of years ago and met with a beekeeper there who specializes in Ulmo. I was there in the wrong season unfortunately and all I got was a taste. I did eventually get a jar and have been keeping it for a taste now and then. Apparently it does have good ‘active’ antibacterial properties… which, as time goes by, I predict we will be hearing about from different honeys all over the world! As for the strength of the honey, here is a paper you can refer to: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20813024 that compares Ulmo to Manuka. Remember that thre reasons why honey is such a strong antibacterial compound are no where near being fully understood. There is much more to honeys’ antibacterial potency than simply hydrogen peroxide.
I think that most of us want to think that honey is more than a wound treatment, although it is a very good one, but that it also is a therapeutic food when eaten. Perhaps with antioxidant properties that help us stay healthier longer. From this perspective, it is vital that honey is eaten raw to retain its properties.
…Scott
The “richest” pure golden honey in the world comes from the foothills of Mt. Rainier, Washington State,USA.
The few beekeepers who put in the effort to harvest honey there, usually keep it for themselves.
“Fireweed” honey,from the mountainsides, is wonderful.
Hi James:
I have tried Fireweed honey and enjoyed it! Thanks for the recommendation!
…Scott
What an amazing resource! Thanks so much for creating this, Scott. I’m looking for information about buying honey wholesale, then selling it retail. Specifically, if I buy honey from my neighborhood beekeeper, how can I prove to my County Public Health Department that the honey is from a “legitimate source.”
(This question is from the Health Dept., btw.)
Hi David:
Where are you located David (state/county)? Different states have differing requirements.
…Scott
Hi Scott, I just wanted to add that I think your website is amazing! Thank you so much for creating a site that is educational on bees and honey!
Hi Scott,
Your blog has excellent information. I’ve enjoyed reading. Would you mind if we refer our customers to your website to help educate the public?
We’re opening a ‘honey bar’ along with the sell of our honey for customers to taste some of the wonderful flavors of nature.
Thank you for sharing your passion.
Tanya
Hi Tanya – Thanks and please feel free to share.