>> So, if you keep organic honey on the shelf of a roadside stand in the
sun, it will quickly be no better than the cheapest honey in a
supermarket and probably worse.

That's not true. The cheap honey in the supermarket often contains honey
as only as a primary and often even secondary ingredient. Honey will
oxidize some minor components in the sun, however that's a process that
takes months, maybe weeks if it really is in the direct sun. The worst
thing that can happen is some carmelization. However the heat from the
sun is probably less than the heat used to treat honey unless and only
maybe unless you are talking desert or tropical sun. I can't see a
responsible beekeeper keeping honey in the sun except maybe on a FIFO
basis for displays in uncovered stands. If you are selling honey
successfully in a stand, the honey isn't sitting out in the sun for ANY
appreciable time, and the honey is subject to much gentler conditions
than when shipped in glass containers cross-country, and stored in
unknown conditions for often years before it gets to final destination.


>> But it will still have the label even though it is poisonous to bees
and would never make it into Europe.

I seriously doubt that too, the only thing that
unadultered/uncontaminated (I don't need to say organic for this, just
any unadultered or uncontaminated honey) could have that would be bad
for bees from long term storing in sun or high heat is carmel, not
spoilage. However I would be happy to call carmelized honey spoiled
honey.



>> But it is still organic and people will feel good spending money for
bad honey.

I can hardly call it bad honey, what makes it bad? High HMF or low HMF?
Like I said, it takes honey a LONG time to oxidize and carmelize in the
sun. It would have to be a really hot day with direct noon-time sun to
have honey heated to 122°. Red wine would be effected much more
drastrically than honey, however the ideal storage conditions for honey
are similar to wine (No or little exposure to light, and an even
unchanging temperature). Honey contains various major and minor esters,
colloids and enzymes just like wine and the "quality" of the honey can
be swiftly destroyed in honey. However this "quality" has nothing to do
with the spoilage of honey, simply with its loss of certain flavor and
olfactory profiles and perhaps a loss in some proported health benefits
of these esters and enzymatic activity. It’s the same with wine, it
doesn't spoil it, it just makes it less desireable. I agree with you
here in that...but not that it becomes spoiled (which is the term I
think Bill was looking for), nor bad for the bees.


--
Scot Mc Pherson
The Mc Pherson Family Honey Farms
Davenport, Iowa USA

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