Nick Wallingford wrote:

> Back in the 1950s bee scientists in Russia did a lot of feeding of
> contained colonies with flavoured sugar syrups.  That is, the bees
> were simply used to modify sucrose solutions and store it into
> combs. The resulting material (I won't call it honey...) was then
> extracted...
>
> One could conceivably produce all *sorts* of flavoured honey like
> material, limited only by what you could get them to 'take down'...

Yes, the point is that one cannot call it "honey" just because it is
something that one has gotten out of a bee colony.  In the same way, no
one would (or at least should) feed sugar syrup when supers are in place
and then extract and sell this product.  If one feeds flavored syrups
(such as Coca cola syrup, for example) you could conceivably get all
sorts of flavors.  This however would not be honey, and to market it as
such would be to downgrade the wonderful natural product of the honey
bee as well as cause all kinds of confusion in the general public.

In a related matter, I have had some of my honey made up into
"Honeystix", and they sell very well, especially to children at fairs
and festivals.  Now many artificially flavored "Honeystix" are on the
market as well, and there is a good demand for them.  But I can't stand
to sell flavored honey productrs, so have reluctantly decided to stop
carrying any "Honeystix" at all.

Ted Fischer
Dexter, Michigan USA