The Inspiration

I became inspired about honeybees, many years ago, when a friend of mine made the comment “When the bees disappear, we are in big trouble.”  This simple statement made me start to investigate the value and benefits provided by honeybees.  Honeybees are estimated to pollinate over $15 billion dollars’ worth of agricultural crops every year.  Fruits and vegetables, ranging from blueberries to almonds and pumpkins are pollinated by honeybees.  Soybean yields are estimated to increase by 10 – 40% and this doesn’t even begin to consider the environmental benefits provided by the bees.

My focus as a beekeeper is to use my bees to help increase the pollination of the native species in my area of Illinois.  In March I will see my bees out pollinating the lilies and daffodils that have braved the late season snows and decided to germinate.  Come summer, the bees are eagerly pollinating the peach and apple trees in my orchard along with the cucumbers, squash, and other vegetables in my garden. They are also busily pollinating the wild blackberries, black locust and red maple trees along with many other native plants on our property.

Provided the bees had a good summer, I will harvest their surplus honey in late July or early August, before the goldenrod blooms.  The sweet honey collected in the fall is a combination of countless hours of labor, by tens of thousands of bees, working towards one collective goal: store enough food so the hive will have enough to eat and can survive the winter.  

BEE Inspired honey is raw honey.  This means it has not been heated or pasteurized in any way. The honey has been filtered 3 – 4 times to remove the beeswax, bee particles and other “debris”. Raw honey, however, will contain pollen.  This is what conveys the health benefits and can help “train” your immune system to recognize potential allergens. Many people find a spoonful of honey every day helps reduce the severity of their allergies in the spring and fall.

Raw honey will never spoil or go bad.  If you notice the honey getting cloudy, this is because it is starting to crystalize.  This is a natural process for raw, unpasteurized honey.  You can scoop it out with a spoon and use it like the liquid honey or you can place the jar in a pan of warm water and gently heat the honey up until it becomes liquid again.  Do not microwave the jar of honey. This will destroy the pollen and the natural health benefits provided by raw honey.

I hope you enjoy your BEE Inspired honey and please think about what simple actions you can take to help the bees in your community.

Thank you,

Dave Cox Co-founder Inspire EdVentures