Hello Logan and All,
Logan wrote:
> Can't be!!  We were assured by our diligent public servants in DC that
> GATT has plenty of protections in it to make certain no US consumers
> would be in any danger.
> > http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/08/28/contaminated.honey/index.html


The customs service and the FDA were on top of this problem so to my
knowledge no contaminated honey is on U.S. store shelves.

I  am not fond of Gatt myself but also realize that *protectionism* is never
the long term solution.

In this case the consumer is not in danger. We had plenty of early warning.
If it had been business as usual at the FDA  then honey would be being
pulled from store shelves.

Most packers are honest people. We have got a few which are crooks (should I
name names?). Those packers  have never been stung by a bee or had their
eyes blood red from sweat running dowwn into eyes pulling honey supers. They
are only interested in *middle man *profits.

quote from the CNN article:
"the investigation has INCLUDED search warrants EXECUTED on BUSINESSES and
RESIDENCES in Los Angeles,  California; Newark, New Jersey  and Tampa,
Florida, as well as in Australia, Malaysia and Thailand.

In my opinion these people had been assured the honey was not contaminated
(but it was) and and the Chinese honey was being relabeled in the countries
listed for shipment to those packers in the U.S. to look as if the honey had
originated in those countries.

For the good of the honey industry I hope the above packers do jail time.

Many packers are desperate to get honey as most of the U.S. is getting a
pitiful honey crop. A word of warning to those desperate to try what the
above packers did. "Big Brother" is watching!

 The drought has hit Missouri hard the last three months but most of us have
got a average to above average crop .

I am about one third through getting my crop off and extracted and my
partner is about half way through his. Not much is blooming and the bees are
robbing, stinging and not wanting to leave supers.
 Most of us are going to keep our honey crop surplus until we are sure the
drought will not continue through the next year.
In the 1986 drought year  we fed bees spring , summer and fall. 1985 was
above average crop and very similar to this year.
Sincerely,
Bob