> ... she lacked the money needed to really promote the
> honey syrup product through advertising.  The Honey Board might could help.
> The last time i was in our local Wal mart super center all creamed honey had
> lost its shelf space...

> Other than "pure honey" the market has to be built for creamed honey and
> syrups.... Allen is correct in his belief we need to find new products.

Thanks Bob.  Putting a new product on the mass market can be a tricky thing.  It
is not just a matter of making something that tastes good. It must be introduced
in the right way at the right time.  Packaging has to be excellent, then there
is more...  Just because it did not work one place and one time, does not mean
it cannot be a runaway hit in another other.

For local markets, the matter is much simpler and the risks are less.  The
opportunities are there.  We made a living selling our honey at farmers markets
many years ago, and we found the at the more honey products -- up to about
ten -- we had at our tables, the better we did and the better we could
differentiate ourselves from any competition.  We had a successful mail order
business for around twenty years (We sold it last year)and we found the same
there, except that there is no limit to products you can offer, if they are at
all popular.

At any rate the most fundamental thing is to have an excellent product, but
whether it succeeds or fails depends on much more than that.

The cost of the honey in a syrup is not that much more than the sugar in similar
products -- in comparison to selling price -- so that is not really an excuse to
dismiss the idea.  It *can* work and unless we find ways to sell more honey, we
will just spend our time fighting over a market that is spiralling down to zero.
The Honey Board was a good idea and seemed to have good results early on, but I
don't know if it is doing much nowadays.

allen