Which would you choose?
A pot of gold or a pot of honey?
Many would choose the gold until they figured out how much this is really worth.
How much more?
Let's find out.
Honey, an organic natural sugar alternative with a unique characteristic
of having an indefinite shelf life.
How did this get here?
This is honey Berry?
This is stealing.
The history of honey dates back all the way to 2100 BC.
Where it was first mentioned in the secret writings of India and Egypt.
The collection of honey was evidenced when a cave painting surfaced in Valencia,
Spain.
The painting show two hunters collecting honey from a wild bee's nest.
When honey was discovered, it became the first and most widespread sweetener used
by mankind.
During the time honey was not simply consumed as food, but it was also used to
make medicine and even make cement.
Honey has had such a great impact on many cultures, including India, Greece, and
China.
It has also appeared with significance in many religions.
As of 2017.
The global production of honey was at 1.9 million tons with China being the lead
producer at 29% of the world total.
Followed by other major producers, Turkey, Iran, the United States, and Ukraine.
Honey starts out as a flower nectar waiting to be harvest by a bumblebee.
The bee will then break down the nectar into simple sugars and stored inside the
honeycomb.
Here, it is stored as a source of longterm food supply only to be used in the cold
seasons to come or food supply is scarce.
Naturally, humans have found a way to farm this resource.
By having swarms nest within manmade hives.
A swarm diligently works to produce honey waiting to be collected.
Inside the hive, there are three types of bees.
The queen bee, the drones, and the workers.
Workers are versatile.
They range of taking care of the hive, fending off other invading queen bees.
The drone simply exists for the purpose of mating with other potential queens.
And for the queen, her job is to lay eggs.
On average, a hive will produce
Now, in order to safely collect honey from the hive, beekeepers will typically pacify
the bees using a bee smoker.
This method releases smoke that causes the bees to become less aggressive and at the
same time, disable their communications network.
The honeycomb is then removed from the hive and the honey is extracted from the
comb by either crushing it or using an extractor.
The honey is then filtered to remove beeswax and other debris.
Due to the composition and chemical properties of honey.
It's suitable for longterm storage.
have been preserved for centuries
The key to preservation is limiting the access to humidity.
Honey has a sufficiently high sugar content to inhibit fermentation.
However, if exposed to moist air, even honey can dilute to the point where
fermentation is a possibility.
With how sophisticated and long the process is to collect and preserve honey,
how is it possible to sell something like this, for under $10 a bottle?
That's where the process of adulteration comes in.
Now, chances are the honey you're having from the store, is a version of honey
combined with sugars, syrups and compounds.
Adulteration of honey is sometimes used as a method of deception to lead buyers into
believing that the honey they're purchasing is pure.
However, there are laws to combat this.
According to the codex of the United Nations, any product labeled as honey or
pure honey must be a wholly natural product.
However, other nations have their own laws concerning labeling.
To truly distinguish high quality honey, you have to judge the fragrance, taste and
consistency, right?
Freshly collected honey at 68 degrees Fahrenheit should flow from a knife in a
straight stream without breaking into separate drops.
In jars, fresh honey should appear as pure, consistent fluid and should not set
in layers.
So how does honey get such an expensive price tag?
Harvesting honey is a labor intensive task, not only for the bees, but for the
humans as well.
Maintaining the swarm to make sure there's a sufficient amount of honey produced can
be a 24/7 job.
As a result, beekeepers need to be compensated for their time.
Since honey is a natural product, it's availability is also subjective to
seasonal variations.
The type of honey you purchase can also affect the price tag.
For example, purchasing a raw honey carries a larger price tag than its
counterpart.
Raw honey is an unfiltered, unpasteurized honey with a unique profile.
Big commercial operations, may heat honey to reduce its viscosity.
Alongside the filtering process, sometimes they will blend honey from many different
suppliers.
Because of this reason, raw honey is viewed as more pure and carries a larger
price tag.
It can also depend on the type of honey, especially if the quantities are extremely
limited.
Here are a few types of limited honeys.
From Acacia honey to Manuka, you can enjoy a likelier honey or a special honey
sourced from the Manuka bush.
However, something as special as Manuka can cost you up to $30 per 250 grams, but
it doesn't stop there.
Even more expensive than their luxurious Manuka, there exists the Elvish honey.
The name originates from the Turkish name Perry Bali, which means fairy honey or
elves honey.
In 2009, a Turkish beekeeper witnessed a swarm of active honeybees at a nearby
cave.
It was on a mountain North East of Turkey.
He followed the bees inside the cave and discovered many combs hanging from the
high walls.
With the help of professional climbers and 500 meters of rope.
He harvested 18 kilograms of wild honey from the cave.
They concluded that the honey was 7 years old, with a very high content of minerals
from the surrounding cave.
One kilogram of the honey was purchased from the lab at a price of $50,800.
So what is it that makes Elvish honey so valuable?
The main factors include the high altitude of the cave, the weather, and the perfect
condition within the cave.
It is said that the minerals that come from this Elvish honey is similar to that
of the Manuka honey, except with elevated levels of antibacterial properties.
But here's an interesting perspective.
Saricayir honey, is a type of honey that comes from the same geographic location as
Elvish honey, Saricayir honey comes from manmade hives and only cost $35 in
comparison.
Theoretically, it should provide the same type of nectar as the precious Elvish
honey, but does that mean the cave is unique enough to drive such a price
difference?
I'll let you guys be the judge of that in the comments below.