Peter pointed out the view of the "larger" beekeeper:

> The average consumer looks at two things:
> 1. Price - the cheaper, the better for the housekeeping budget.
> 2. Consistency and packaging.

But he also said:

> I agree, in most cases, bread, cheese, milk, beer, you name it, when
> produced in an artisanal manner (read local) result in a product that
> fairs well when compared with mass produced, industrialized foods.

Well then, stop being such an enthusiastic supporter of, and willing
participant in, the industrial supply system!

First, go get a copy of "The Cave" by Jose Saramago, and read it.
I'm serious - it is a novel, but it will clearly explain the choice
we all face in regard to "industrialized" products versus "artisan"
products.

But until you get a chance to read the book, exactly what part of

        "Honey is not a fungible commodity"

is unclear?

Stop trying to position your honey as a "cost-effective sweetener".
It isn't.
It never will be.
It will only be sold at a profit as a PREMIUM-GRADE product.

For every mass-marketed, low-end, version of a food, there
is a high-end, elite, snobby version.  Become snooty!

While this requires an admission that one's ability to produce
honey in drums may exceed one's ability to bottle, market,
and promote one's product, this is the difference between
a selling "a crop" and marketing "a product".

Downsizing to a level appropriate to your capacity to sell at a higher
profit margin (direct to stores and/or direct to the consumer) does
not mean poverty.  What's wrong with reducing your hives by 1/4 or
even 1/2 if you clear $3 per pound rather than less than a dollar?
(This is called "right-sizing" in "Business 101".)

Better yet, you have dealt "the mass-market competition" a mortal blow,
by preventing them from buying your honey to blend with the very stuff
that you despise so much.  While some other beekeeper might choose to
take your place as a willing stooge of "the competition", he will soon
face the same frustrations that you currently face, and may not last long.

If enough beekeepers "went artisan", this would leave the competition
exposed.  They would not have an adequate supply of high-quality honey
to blend with cheap honey, and they would be forced to either pay more
to buy quality honey (which would force them to raise their prices)
or force them to bottle and sell a product that will be inferior.

To those who might scoff at the statement above, I need only ask why
packers buy ANY higher-priced honey from people like Peter when they
also import honey from the cheap source du jour at less than half the
price.  They MUST have Peter's honey to blend in, or their product
would be unappetizing swill.

> Local bakers have deliveries during the night of frozen dough from
> which arrives the famous baguette - most are going out of business.

And what can one learn from this?  That "boutique" products are a
profitable niche only as long as the actual product is worthy of
the name!

                        jim

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