Are Honey & Beeswax Products Ethical?
Nowadays, most honey bees are used heavily to pollinate enormous mono-crops all over the globe. They are worked hard; transported all over, fed sugar syrups and antibiotics, and colonies are split to make more hives.
Is it real honey you’re buying at the shops? Probably not. Because of increased global demand and the lowest production levels in history, it’s estimated that over 90% of honey is FAKE (adulterated; cut with corn/rice syrup).
Any conscious person, vegan or not, is going to feel miserable about this. As a result, market trends show that sales for vegan alternatives are up, and honey-related products are down. At first glance, this makes sense. I know I don’t want to support a dishonest and adulterated industry, and neither do you!
But let’s clear something up right here. There is an alternative to the murky, mass-industrialisation of the honey bee. And we need to put this train back on the right track.
It’s our job to find the beekeepers who are doing things the right way, and support them.”
Not all honey bee products are mass produced, and not all honey bees are industrialised. If we want the privilege of eating fruits and vegetables, it’s our job to find the beekeepers who are doing things the right way, and support them.
What’s Really At Stake
- We rely on bees to pollinate two-thirds of the food we eat.
- There are few wild honey bee colonies remaining, and they don’t survive very long because of environmental stress and human activity.
- The vast majority of honey bees will only survive with the help of beekeepers.
The real way to save bees
I wish the answer was to simply leave the bees alone and let them flourish in the wild, recolonise in lovely, old Oak trees and across the densely wooded rainforests. Sadly, this is not the case anymore; we are way past that point.
If you want future generations to enjoy fruit and veg, you must support local beekeepers. You can also do all the other things, like plant flowers, etc. But in todays’ busy, modern world, where many of us don’t even have a garden anymore, supporting beekeepers is our best bet.
Demand & supply
The beekeeper and the honey bee have a mutually beneficial relationship, and that’s ok. We need to create the demand for ethically-produced, raw honey and beeswax products. Ultimately, this will benefit the bees and beekeepers, as well as help ensure our mutual survival!
How To Ensure Mutual Survival
Buy locally produced, unpasteurised honey and unbleached beeswax products (raw honey, foods made with local honey, cosmetics with honey and beeswax, beeswax candles, etc.).
Melissa x
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