> Go to www.reallyrawhoney.com to see some real marketing at work.

Quite interesting.  Although the intent may be pure, the product is not, and
the text contains obvious untruths.  IMO this page contains blatantly false
advertising and 'information' that is damaging to the honey industry as a
whole.

They say, "Really Raw Honey is totally unprocessed so it still contains
pollen, propolis, honeycomb and live enzymes--all the goodness the bees put
in!"

Extracting IS processing, and also is the point in the handling where most
damage is done to honey.  Only improper handling while in the supers,
improper heating or employing unsanitary facilities can rival extracting for
the amount of damage that can be done to honey.  In fact, the contamination
caused by uncapping and extracting is the reason for the procedures that
normally follow extraction -- warming, screening, filtering, etc.

The damage done by uncapping and extracting is widely known by beekeepers,
and no serious competitor would ever enter extracted honey into a liquid
honey contest.  Honey that is carefully and gently pressed and/or drained
from the comb is preferred by those who are looking for the best, and, of
course, we all know that honey in the comb is honey in its very purest, and
the =only= unprocessed form.

In addition to incorporating air and liberating volatile honey components
into the air in the room, wax, propolis, dust, cocoons, pollen, bee parts,
larval and pupal parts and fluids, and debris can be -- and almost
invariably are -- incorporated into the formerly pure honey, during the
process of uncapping and extracting.

Although there are a few anomalous exceptions, contrary to what is stated on
the page in question, pure honey -- honey in the comb before extarction --
does not normally contain "pollen, propolis, (and bits of) honeycomb".  If
any quantity of these materials is found in the honey, it is a direct result
of the processing.

Going down the page a bit, we see "Really Raw Honey is rich with live
enzymes, vitamins and trace minerals!"

We know this is false.  (At least I hope we all do).  Honey is not 'rich'
with vitamins.

Then we see, "Over decades, standard beekeeping practices have weakened the
honey bees' immune system, making them more and more vulnerable to invading
parasites and illness."

Does anyone with any credibility actually believe this?

And finally, "the fields of wildflowers and herbs where our bees gather
nectar are never sprayed with pesticides or chemical fertilizers. "

I assume that there is never mosquito control anywhere in their district and
that they know exactly where the bees forage?

I give them marks for imagination, but I think they are out of bounds on
some of their claims.

allen
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/

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