Q: At what age is it safe for children to consume honey?

A: Honey should never be given to an infant child under the age of 12 months (one year) old. This includes honey in baked or processed food or adding honey to food, water and/or formula.

Q: Our honey has become hard and crystallized. Does crystallized honey mean it’s expired or is it still safe to eat? 

A: You bet it is still safe to eat and honey never goes bad. Honey has been discovered in ancient Egyptian tombs and even thousands of years later it is still edible. There are a few remedies to the annoyance of crystallization. (1) Place the jar/bottle in a pot of warm water, set heat to medium-low and stir until crystals dissolve. (2) Place the jar in a pot of hot water until it liquefies. (3) After warming your honey you can pause the crystallization process by freezing it. Then simply take it out to thaw as needed. NOTE: We do not suggest microwaving or boiling honey since this will kill the enzymes, antioxidants and other good things found in raw honey.

Science Fact: The natural phenomenon of crystallization happens when glucose, one of three main sugars in honey, spontaneously precipitates out of the supersaturated honey. The glucose loses water (becoming glucose monohydrate) and takes the form of a crystal (a solid body with a precise and orderly structure). The crystals form a lattice which immobilizes other components of honey in a suspension thus creating the semi-solid state.

Q: How should I store my honey?

A: For best results store your honey at room temperature in an air tight container away from direct sunlight. Honey does not need to be refrigerated and refrigeration speeds up the crystallization process however freezing pauses the crystallization process.

Q: Why does some honey taste different than others and why are there so many different colors/shades of honey?

A: The flavor and colors of honey differs depending on the nectar source (the plant blossoms) visited by the honeybees. The color of honey ranges from nearly colorless to dark brown and its flavor varies from delectably mild to distinctively bold.

There is more than 300 unique types of honey available in the United States, each originating from a different floral source. As a general rule, light colored honey is milder in taste and dark-colored honey is stronger flavored. Honey is produced in every state, but depending on the floral source location, certain types of honey are produced only in a few regions. Honey is also produced in most countries of the world.