Smiley Honey News

I was taking some pictures of our beeswax products, and this honey bee flew over to investigate. I am continually amazed by a bee's senses. Whenever we are washing empty honey barrels outside of our facility, dozens of honey bees will show up in a matter of minutes. Think about it -- with a brain the size of a grass seed, foraging honey bees can zero in on nectar, honey and beeswax in a flash. Recent research shows that honeybees can detect specific airborne molecules in the parts per trillion range.

Dr. John Lieff published a fascinating piece about honeybee brains on his blog "Searching for the Mind" in November 2012.  Here are some highlights from Dr. Lieff's article:

• bees use abstract thought and symbolic language
• bees routinely solve the advanced mathematical problem of the travelling salesman
• bees mix medication in the hive and know when a fungus is dangerous
• bees distinguish landscape scenes, types of flowers, shapes and patterns
• bees forage for information
• bees learn categories, sequences, combinations and the changes of future rewards

For the complete article, please go to: http://jonlieffmd.com/blog/the-remarkable-bee-brain-2

We love hearing from our customers. This week we received a very nice note from Charlotte in Texas. She is enjoying her first ever bottle of tupelo. She also included this comic strip, which is too funny not to share.

You may have heard these little nuggets of trivia before, but we always enjoy repeating them. Some of the facts are so amazing, we never lose our sense of wonder when we contemplate them anew. The answers to the questions are found below. See how many you can get right without peeking.

1.  How many flowers must honeybees visit to make one pound of honey?

2.  How many miles does a beehive fly (collectively) to make a pound of honey?

3.  How much honey does an average worker bee make in its lifetime?

4.  How much honey would it take to fuel a bee's flight around the world?

5.  How long does a worker bee live in mid-summer?

6.  How many bees are there in an average hive around mid-summer?

7.  How many different tasks do worker bees perform?

8.  How many eggs does the queen lay each day?

9.  How many beekeepers are there in the United States?

10. Which state is nicknamed the beehive state?

Bonus Question: What is the average annual consumption of honey in the United States?

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(1) approximately two million; (2) 55,000 miles; (3) about 1/10 of a teaspoon; (4) about one ounce; (5) around 6 weeks; (6) between 40,000 and 70,000; (7) fourteen -- nursing the larvae, caring for the queen, cleaning the hive, cleaning other bees, removing dead bees, building honeycomb, capping honeycomb, packing pollen in cells, fanning nectar to remove moisture, repairing the hive, collecting nectar and pollen, collecting propolis, collecting water and guarding the hive; (8) around 1,500 per day; (9) approximately 212,000; (10) Utah.

Bonus: Not enough! (about 1.3 pounds per year).

 

 

While The Scientists And Beekeeping Community Continue To Work On This Serious Problem, There Are Things That You Can Do To Help Improve Honeybee Health.

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Customers periodically ask whether there are any additives in our honey. The answer is ABSOLUTELY NOT. We sell 100% pure, raw, natural honey -- exactly as the bees made it. We do not blend our honey, nor do we add anything to the honey. It is as close as you can come to reaching into a beehive and scooping out the honey yourself. In addition, we know all of our beekeeping partners personally, and we require beekeeper certification regarding the purity of all honey delivered to us. We take pride in offering the best natural, raw honey available anywhere. Our good reputation at Smiley Honey is paramount, and we work very hard to earn it every day.

Unfortunately, not all businesses have such high standards. In a recent article published by BusinessWeek, it tells a sordid tale about adulterated honey from China: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-honey-launderers--uncovering-the-largest-food-fraud-in-u-s--history-171454285.html This news report should remind us all that we should know more about the foods we purchase, to ensure that we are consuming high quality goods brought to us by reputable and honest producers.

 

 

 

Officials Say They Don't Have Any Reason To Call The Red Substance Unsafe, But Advise Beekeepers Not To Mix It With Normal-colored Honey And To Report It To The State.

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