When Pitcairn island was settled by the mutineers of the HMAV Bounty in 1790, they hoped it would be one of the last places on earth they would ever be discovered. Their wish came true. Despite a concerted effort by the British, they remained undiscovered for 18 years. Not only was it one of the remotest tropical islands on earth, it had been charted incorrectly by almost 200 miles.
Pitcairn Island
It is a tiny island of 88 acres and less than 50 inhabitants, located approximately half way between Peru and New Zealand. Most are descendants of the original mutineers and their Tahitian wives. With a high, rugged shoreline and poor anchoring near the island (there is a tiny harbor with a breakwater and a boathouse for two longboats used to transfer passengers and cargo) visitors are rare. Its regular connection to the rest of the world is the cargo/mail boat, the MV Claymore II, that visits only once every three months.
Bee on a Passion Flower
Pitcairn is blessed with rich, fertile soil, and tropical climate ideal for the growth of many nectar-producing plants and tropical fruit trees including coconuts, bananas, mangoes, papayas, oranges and grapefruits.
It is a British territory and is subsidized partially by the UK. Its inhabitants exist mainly on fishing, subsistence farming; and income from selling handicrafts, postage stamps and now—honey.
Pitcairn Island Honey
This light amber honey is very smooth with a persistent lightly sweet taste. It has a very fruity aroma and after taste. This particular sample of honey has lasted over a year in this taster’s refrigerator with only slight crystallization at the bottom of the jar. The island is almost completely free of chemicals and pesticides although organic farming is not regulated. Pitcairn’s bees are the Italian honey bees, Apis mellifera ligustica, a particularily gentle bee that has adapted to the continuous nectar flow and favorable summer weather.
Pitcairn Island Honey Jars
The label states, “The rich and intense fruitiness of Pitcairn’s honey is attributed to the nectar from the Mango, Lata, Passion Flower, Guava and Roseapple flowers found in abundance on the lush tropical South Pacific Island…” The website also advises you may wait several months for delivery due to the infrequent pickups to the Island. I had almost forgotten about my order when it arrived over two months later.
Beekeeping
In 1998 the UK Government aid agency, the Department for International Development, funded a program for Pitcairn Island which included training for Pitcairn’s bee keepers and an inspection of Pitcairn bees and honey for disease. The effort was successful. Pitcairn now exports honey products to New Zealand and the rest of the world and is working to grow the number of hives to increase production.
Storing the honey—One final note; the first jar of honey I opened was delicious but within 24 hours it had fermented. This is not dangerous but does affect the taste of the honey. This was a sign the water content of the honey was high, which isn’t unusual for tropical honey. Some feel this is actually a good sign that the honey is unadulterated and pure. I opened another and it was fine. It went into the fridge and the other two into the freezer. Over a year later the fridge honey is still delicious. So if you order some Pitcairn honey, store it in the fridge.
Official Honey Inspection Certificate
Shipping Container Filled with Honey & Covered in Pitcairn Island-issued Stamps
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References and further reading
Government of Pitcairn Islands & Where to Buy Pitcairn Island Honey
Report on Beekeeping in the South Pacific, written by James Driscoll who helped set up the beekeeping operation on Pitcairn in 1998.
Pitcairn Island Website Links – including resident home pages
Henderson Island (one of the Pitcairn Islands) World Heritage Site
The Great Revolution in Pitcairn – A short satirical story by Mark Twain
Pitcairn Island Study Center
Is the honey from Pitcairn Island considered to be raw? Has it been heated, filtered, processed, or pasteurized? Thank You
Gerald E. payne
Hi Gerald,
The only thing we do to the honey is finely sieve any foreign bits such as dead bees or parts of the cone, etc, before we jar it.
For water content, the co-operative and some bee keepers now have a refractometer. Which will test for and measure water content. The test is standard for quality control.
Cheers
Mike
Would love to order some.
How do I do so from the United States?
Thanks!
Jim
Jim:
It is very straight forward. You can buy it from Mike Lupton-Christan himself at the government store. This is how I purchased it. Don’t be discouraged by the long ship time… that is the consequence of acquiring honey from such remote place.. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
…Scott
Hello Mike,
Could you contact with me, I`m interrested of buyin the honey from you.
Aleksandra:
Please contact Mike at the website below. He is not watching this page.
I like your website! You have some interesting honey for sale from around the world. Note: The website is in Polish. I use Google Translate to read it in English. Here is the English version
…Scott
Hello Scott,
Thank you for your reply. At the moment our website is in polish language because we are at the beginning of our route and we collect the honey from all over the world right now.
I need to contact with Mike becasue we are interrested in his honey. Pls help me in it. I tried to call to him but there is no answer. I will be indebted for any information and your help. I will check your message tomorrow.
Best regards
Aleksandra
Scott, pls contact with me as fast as possible. It`s urgent matter.
Hi: I’m a big enthusiast of this honey, just as you are. I fell in love with the stuff so much that I ended up coming up with a business idea for it: buy it in bulk, then resell it at a markup to people who would be willing to pay a few dollars extra to avoid the interminable wait you have to endure when ordering directly from the island. I spent a few months putting out a few “feelers” on eBay and Amazon, and it appears there may be a market for this. It will never be a big deal, of course, but if it works out, it will be a fun little sideline.
I’m contacting you to ask if you would be willing to put a link to my store, https://www.pitcairnislandhoney.com/ , on your web site, as I’m trying to boost my search results in Google. In return, I would be happy to give you a free jar of honey. If you’d like to do this, please give me an address to send your honey to. Thanks!
i have been mesmerised by the story of the hms bounty, and even looked into travelling to pitcairn, it seems almost impossible to get there, then i discovered they make their own honey, and i decided no matter what the price , i would love to try this.
I order this honey back in August and it arrived just in time for Christmas in the USA. The taste is wonderful and I look forward to making something special. Is there anywhere I can find recipes or a cookbook regarding Pitcairin Island? Thanks