What’s up to all of our friends in the community!

Welcome to “Decoding Honey Labels” with the Honey House Team. In this guide, we will unravel what raw, organic, and pure labels on honey jars really mean, offering you clear insights into choosing the best honey. As we dive in please keep in mind that the intricacies of Beekeeping and honey are vast, and all of the insights we give, we do so to help educate the world regardless of your experience levels in beekeeping!

There can be a lot going on these days on food labels! Our goal with this is to help you keep it nice and simple during the process of looking at all of the honey options out there! Deciphering which honey is the best can be difficult. This is especially true with deceitful food labels that many companies use to increase sales. If you are confused seeing the different types of honey on the shelves, you are not alone. Many people are unsure which is better, raw, organic, or pure. Aren’t they all the same?

Here’s a handy guide to decoding the truth from these honey labels:

Decoding Honey Labels | What’s In A Label?

At first glance, it is extremely difficult to determine the goodness of honey based on how it appears from outside of the container. Is the darker honey more nutritious? Will it help the bees more if you pick up the lighter honey? Which bottle is best for health? In most cases, the only way to make a final choice is by reading the labels.
You might want to get acquainted with these familiar labels to figure out which honey is worth your money:

Raw Honey

Honey that is not treated with heat is raw honey. Beekeepers use a manual extractor to remove all honey from the combs. The honey extracted is also not filtered. Everything present in the honey, like pollen, propolis, and small bits of beeswax is retained.

It is for this reason that raw honey is considered to have the most nutrients and valuable antioxidant properties. Without filtering, both the nutritional profile and fresh flavor of raw honey are enhanced making it a huge favorite among health enthusiasts and local beekeepers.
The benefits of using raw honey are centered on its medicinal properties. Because it contains pollen and propolis, it is regarded to be the most potent kind of honey. Unlike its heavily processed counterparts, raw honey is more effective as an antibacterial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, wound-healing, and anti-allergy agent. All of these healing qualities of honey are attributed to the presence of bee propolis and honey that are mostly removed during filtration and heat application.

Organic Honey

Based on the National Organic Standards Board guidelines, honey can only be labeled as “organic” when the bees used to produce it only forage nectar from areas that do not use modern agriculture methods. The apiaries must be located away from urban areas, highways, and other places that are heavily cultivated. This ensures that the plants which bees collect nectar from are organically grown and are not contaminated with pesticides or treated with chemical miticides for pest control.
While it is not exposed to synthetic chemicals, organic honey may be processed by heat or filtered to a crystal-clear texture. It is a healthy and nutritious choice but its nutritional value may be significantly reduced during the refinement process.

Pure Honey

Regarding pure honey, the label does not guarantee that it is not processed using heat. The term “pure” is used to indicate that every jar of honey has no additives in it. Local beekeepers like to emphasize the pureness of the honey they produce. This is because, in most commercialized honey production, cultured bees are fed with sugar or have corn syrup added to the honey.

If it is labeled as “pure” honey, the product is guaranteed to be 100% honey. It does not indicate, however, about the plants where the nectar is from, how it was harvested, or the number of times it was filtered before the honey was bottled.

Decoding Honey Labels | How Do You Know if Honey is Raw, Organic, or Pure?

Based on appearance, raw honey has a thick, creamy, or cloudy consistency. The natural crystallization caused by the presence of pollen makes raw honey look that way. Without heavy processing, organic and pure honey can also have the same look. However, since both are more prone to commercial processing, they can have a much clearer and more even consistency. The crystallization is slower as compared to raw honey because there are no substrates that encourage sugar crystals to form.
There are many choices if all you want is pure honey. It is better after all compared to industrial honey that is added with sugar syrup. However, if you want to have the medicinal benefits of honey, you need to look for more information other than what is written on the label. You can refer to the manufacturer’s website to check about the harvesting and processing methods used for the product.

The real challenge comes in if you want organic honey. Although the USDA has strict standards in labeling food as organic, it does not define the exact organic standards for honey. It just allows beekeepers to use the USDA organic label if the bee farm meets organic certifications for livestock production. It has nothing to do with the honey produced, only that the bees are kept in areas with organically grown plants and livestock.

Decoding Honey Labels | What to Look For Aside From the Label

When choosing honey based on the label, it is a must to understand the different nuances behind the terms used to classify every type of honey. It will help you make an informed choice if you are aware of what raw, organic, and pure means in labeling honey jars.

Take note, however, that when shopping for good honey, companies may only use those terms for marketing purposes. You might come across instructions about some simple tests that will tell the quality and pureness of your honey. But if possible, the best way to ensure having the best honey on your table is by buying from a local source.

Beekeepers in your area are more willing to let locals check out their beekeeping methods. Unlike big manufacturers who are more likely to use ultra-processing approaches, a small local beekeeper sticks to a more traditional and natural process.

Honey produced from blooms near you is also more effective at treating seasonal allergies, making it more beneficial for your health. Local bee farms also contribute to maintaining a healthy ecosystem by encouraging bees to pollinate home-grown plants.

Additionally, supporting local honey benefits the local economy. You help beekeepers in their business as they provide you with the best honey, whether it is labeled as raw, organic, or pure.

The Honey House team hopes you have been able to find this to be informative. If you have any questions or have had some fun beekeeping experiences please reach out to us on our social media platforms, and tell us all about it. Let’s build a community!