>     Although this may not necessarily be a "scientific" question or a
>     question about the biology/behavior or management of bees, I think
>     some discussion regarding marketing would be a good thing to open on
>     the list.
>     Any comments...?
>
>     Mark Egloff
>     [log in to unmask]
 
Mark,
 
Without money nothing happens.
He who has the gold rules.
 
Need any more reasons everyone?
 
James Peterson PhD.
Giving the fact that the proceeds from marketing our honey provide us with
the funds to continue beekeeping, I am interested in the very volatile
market we are selling in.
 
We are very happy the bulk honey market has gone up, and I think it's way
overdue. If the prices offered by packers would have remained flat, we
would be in a major pinch restocking our hives this spring. In a previous
posting I mentioned the large amount of blowouts we had this winter, about
40%. If it wasn't for the better pricing...........
 
We just got offered .95 a lb. and I have reports of better that a
$1.00/lb.paid on loads. Just three weeks ago we sold a load at .85/lb.
 
Our biggest problem is trying to get the price up in the supermarkets. If
we priced our honey in the stores based on .95/lb. honey, we would be far
above the rest of the pack. It's tempting to sell off all our stocks at the
wholesale rate and quit packing. I have found that packing honey is not
very profitable.
 
What effects are the increasing honey prices going to have on consumer and
industrial users? It would be good to see some stability.
 
Kirk
 
Sleeping Bear Apiaries
Kirk Jones
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when you get lemons, make lemonade....