> A lot of the honey sideliners sell as local is not local.
> I think you would
> recognize the names
> of many Missouri sideline beekeepers which have already ran
> out of their own
> *local* honey and are getting honey from out of state to
> supplement. Several
> from your area.
> 

I guess people do what they have to do to keep their customers happy. But it bothers me when someone gains a market with the promise of “local honey”, then supplies them with commodity honey when the local stuff runs out. Unless of course they label it as such.

I have one local farm market that I supply for as long as I can each year. They love me because my bees are within two miles of their cash register. But I cannot keep up with their demand, and when I run out I tell them so, and they understand. They usually manage to find other, not-quite-as-local suppliers to take up the slack, and I even help them in that regard. We have a great relationship based on honesty.

Folks often ask me about the local honey vs allergies angle. I tell them I don't make any claims, that there’s no research to back it up, but that there’s enough anecdotal evidence that maybe there’s something to it. I cannot then in good conscience sell them “local” honey produced in Nebraska or the Dakotas.

Eugene Makovec,
Kirkwood, Missouri USA

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