None of your beeswax

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Posted at 11:30AM, 24 September 2008 by Jenni Muir - Food writer

Have you spotted any local honey recently? I saw several jars of Regent's Park honey in a North London delicatessen a few weeks ago, but John Chapple, chairman of the London Beekeepers Association, who keeps hives in various royal parks and parts of west London, says it has been a poor year for honey and reiterates the British Honey Association's assessment that UK supplies will run out by Christmas.

Mike Thurlow of Orchid Apiaries also told me that Norfolk just hasn't had a proper crop this year - really just a few buckets' worth, whereas in a good year he'll collect around six tonnes. Last season was also very poor, which makes any Norfolk honey that you can find a genuine speciality.

And while many of us have (finally!) been celebrating four days of lovely sunshine in England, it's too late for it to have a positive effect on honey supplies. As John Chapple explains, most of the season's flowers are gone so there is little for the bees to collect - what pollen they do forage at this time of year goes to their own stores.

Are we all guilty of taking honey for granted? We just always assume it will be there, don't we? But imports are getting harder to come by too: Australian supplies are hampered by drought, China and Argentina have had unfavourable weather conditions, the US has been plagued by colony collapse disorder. Some are even claiming that the demise of the bee population is a more troubling environmental crisis than climate change.

Things have been so bad that Slow Food London decided to highlight the issue at its Southbank festival last weekend. In addition to offering various honey tastings, talks and demonstrations, they asked visitors to sign a petition urging the government to increase funding for research into colony disease, which is a growing source of concern among British beekeepers. You can sign the petition via their website .

I've never thought of myself as a honey connoisseur, but even I've thought about panic buying

I've never thought of myself as a honey connoisseur - I'm more your peanut butter kind of girl - but even I've thought about panic buying. Professionally speaking, the comparative honey tastings I've joined over the years have been fascinating - so many different flavours and textures. The idea that there wouldn't be any in the cupboard is inconceivable. Who doesn't merrily slather it on toast, drizzle it over yogurt, and whisk it into salad dressings?

Of course no one expects the sort of hysteria we see when petrol supplies run low, but next time you see a jar or two of local honey, you might want to snap them up. And meter them out carefully. Gourmet rarities should be savoured, after all.

Comments

James

24 September 2008, 1:42PM
James

Maybe a sense of perspective helps. Unlike oil which is a finite resource, honey production will come around again when the right weather conditions are there. In this world of all food at all times, it's nice to have something to look forward to. P.s. honey is the magic ingredient in fruit teas.

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luv2eat

24 September 2008, 9:33PM
luv2eat

James, your comment about honey production is so true. Here in Aus when we were going through the terrible drought, honey production dropped dramatically and prices skyrocketted. A friend at work supplies me with honey from his property and he can tell from the weather, blossoms etc what he can look forward to from his bees!! We are now in Spring and he has contacted to say my first batch (2kgs) of the season is ready for pick up. It is the best honey and beats anything you buy in the shops.

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pamarula

24 September 2008, 11:00PM
pamarula

I don't think we should be too complacent about ongoing honey production. Many hives have been lost in the last couple of years, we lost two - the bees just died. So I agree with Jenni that perhaps we have to start treating it as a luxury that may not be around in the future.

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