05/23/2024
Tous les miels bruts et purs se cristalliseront et c’est normal! 👇🍯
As a beekeeping operation dedicated to producing the highest quality raw, local honey in North Carolina and Georgia, we have faced an ongoing challenge with some of our wholesale accounts over the years: the crystallization of our raw honey on store shelves, which has led to some stores being reluctant to repurchase. This issue affects not only our farm but also the entire beekeeping industry, particularly the producers, rather than those who merely rebottle honey that they did not produce.
PSA: Honey crystallization is completely natural.
Raw honey, which is not pasteurized or filtered, retains all of its natural enzymes, pollen, and nutrients. This purity causes raw honey to crystallize over time, especially in cooler temperatures. Some raw honey varieties crystallize faster than others, and this can vary year to year depending on the glucose as well as pollen percentages in different varieties. This does not mean the honey has gone bad; in fact, it is a sign of high-quality, natural honey.
In the United States, pasteurized (not raw) honey is widely sold. Pasteurization involves heating raw honey to high temperatures, which delays crystallization but also destroys many beneficial enzymes and nutrients. While this makes the honey smoother and more aesthetically pleasing on retail shelves, it is less nutritious. Interestingly, pasteurized honey is illegal to sell in many parts of the world where the benefits of raw honey are more widely recognized. This has led to a lack of education in the United States about the natural crystallization process of raw honey.
To address this issue, we have introduced new informative labels on our raw honey jars. These labels state that crystallization is completely natural in raw honey, and that it can actually be reversed if the customer doesn’t like crystallized honey. Our goal is to educate those unfamiliar with raw honey, helping them appreciate its natural qualities and benefits.