Kathryn and all,
 Very good post Kathryn. It is almost impossible to have real organic honey. I know the rules and the lack of ability to have REAL organic honey. We have been working very hard for a long time to have the cleanest product for the market place. 
I even had my honey scanned with a mass spectagraph  at the U of Wash. IT turned up clean . I still did not put Organic on the label. I did not have to put words to validate my honey. It was the words and pictures I used at the Farmers Markets. I could answer any question about the location that the honey came from. I had the information because I kept good records of what , where and when the honey came from. I had no problem in selling 20+ barrels a year direct market.
 I know the problems you can have with apiaries up on USDA land. You have to be wired in with them all the time to make Shure they are not spraying. I  had a problem with State Forest land. They were the ones that sprayed 2-4-D and I would not put my bees close to them.
 Kathryn , the web site you put  up on your post is good. Karen has always worked towards good clean honey. I should know because I mentored her years ago. It is up to the beekeeper to keep the quality up on there honey.  That means using new equipment and a lot more work. Your price will reflect the true cost of bringing a clean product to the market place. I use new frames in my supers every year. I sell my honey about twice the price as the normal market and sell everything I bring to the market. So I would not get hung up on putting Certified Organic on a label. It is the product that counts.
Best Regards
Roy Nettlebeck
Tahuya River Apiaries
Olympic Mountains  Wa.    

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