Ah, honey—nature’s sweet little gift that we drizzle on everything from toast to overpriced brunch bowls. But here’s the kicker: a lot of what you’re swirling on your morning yogurt might not even be honey. Yes, folks, we’ve been duped, bamboozled, and stung by the very industry we trusted to provide our organic, bee-made nectar.
Here’s the buzz on the not-so-sweet lies behind that golden nectar glistening on your grocery store shelves…
According to the USDA, honey demand in the U.S. is at an all-time high. We’re talking 618 million pounds consumed just in 2021, and we’re importing over half of that because—surprise, surprise—we simply can’t keep up.
The truth is, honey isn’t something whipped up overnight. You know the saying “worker bee”? Yeah, they’ve definitely earned that title. It typically takes a team of 550 bees about 2-3 weeks to produce just one pound (or 454 grams) of honey.
The U.S. may be the land of plenty, but honey production? Not so much. Our farms desperately need bees to fertilize crops, but here’s the irony: we’ve bulldozed their natural ecosystems to make room for those very crops. You can’t make this stuff up.
So what’s the solution? Import bees. Yes, we’re literally shipping bees in from all over the world and within the United States, like winged mercenaries ready to pollinate for profit. The fact that these bees can’t survive naturally in the places they come from is another layer of the absurdity, but hey, this is 2024. Logic checked out a while ago.
Check out this video of a semi-truck full of bees being unleashed to work their pollination magic on an almond farm in California…
But before we throw a pity party for the bees, let’s talk about the real scandal: the honey fraud. See, back in the day, some honey producers thought they were slick, cutting their honey with high fructose corn syrup—because who doesn’t love a little extra processed sugar in their “all-natural” honey? Regulators caught on to that scheme, so now they’re cutting it with brown rice syrup, like we won’t notice the difference. Cute.
The real kicker? A big chunk of our imported honey comes from China, where they’ve mastered the art of removing the pollen—the very thing that makes honey… well, honey. So while you’re out here paying top dollar for what you think is nature’s liquid gold, you could actually be getting something closer to flavored syrup with a side of fraud.
So, here’s the real question: how on earth can you tell if the honey hiding in your pantry is legit or not? Well, according to some internet sleuths, there are a few tricks to figure it out. You can try heating it, checking the consistency, and there’s even a mind-blowing water trick that magically reveals a “honeycomb” pattern.
Check it out…
Once you’ve weeded out the honey imposters from your cabinets, remember the best way to guarantee you’re getting the real deal is to buy from a local honey supplier. That’s right—going straight to the source is always your safest bet.
But at the end of the day, let’s not forget the bees’ PR campaign, “Save the Bees.” And by the way, it’s not just a cute slogan for tote bags and bumper stickers—it’s a literal cry for help.
Without bees, our entire food system would inevitably collapse. These tiny heroes pollinate our wild trees and flowers, which support other insects, and those insects support birds, bats, mammals, and pretty much everything else up the food chain with food and shelter. In short, keeping these little creatures buzzing is essential to our entire survival. No pressure, right?
Thankfully, there’s Erika Thompson of Texas Beeworks, taking social media by storm with her incredible videos, where she swoops in and saves bees across her state. She’s basically the “bee whisperer,” doing her part to keep the buzz alive.
So, the next time you’re at the store picking up a jar of what you hope is the real deal, remember: the honey industry might be a little sweeter than it seems—but not in a good way.
Till next time, be wickedly wonderful.
