We are buzzing over bees and local honey products in the shops. It is an excellent time to shop for local honey. Not only is this liquid gold tasty, but it also provides many health benefits to our bodies and the environment.
Bee-utifully Healthy
Did you know eating local honey can help fight the effects of allergies? Since bees create their honey using the pollen of local flowers, frequent use of local honey can help build a tolerance to pollen.
According to the Farmer's Almanac, honey can also be used to promote restful sleep, soothe a cough, and treat minor scrapes and burns.
Bee-friend Local Apiaries
Buying local also supports local. You can find local honey at farmer's markets, local grocery stores, and small businesses such as love, Pittsburgh! We carry brands Pittsburgh Honey and Apoidea who sell pure local honey.
Local honey is also more likely to be real. Mass-produced honey can often have added sugars and corn syrups. According to Hilary Kearny in her article, The Importance of Buying Local Honey, "Large-scale producers often sell ultra-filtered honey that has been strained of all its pollen."
Pollinating Environmental Positivity
When you buy local honey you can be assured that you are contributing to a sustainable process because it isn't being shipped across the country using carbon emissions.
Apoidia Apiary works toward sustainability by including edible food production and rainwater retention systems in their landscaping. The herbs and oils used in their artisanal honey are certified organic. They also focus on the use of recyclable, biodegradable, or glass packaging.
Buying local honey promotes bees to make even more honey, which in turn helps pollination. This is a major win for all parties involved: we get delicious honey, and they pollinate more flowers and support our local food systems.
Supporting local sustainable businesses helps to support the environment around you.