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Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: Jeff Bollinger <jeff01 AT email.unc.edu>
  • To: "A list for the Orange County, NC Beekeepers Association" <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] organic honey?
  • Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2006 12:09:32 -0500

Janet Austin wrote:

Jeff,

This is what the National Honey Board says about "organic honey":
(http://www.nhb.org/howto/labeling.html)

If you wish to produce or handle agricultural products that can be
sold, labeled, or represented as "100 percent organic," "organic" or
"made with organic ingredients," you must be certified by an accredited
certifying agent. More information on how to become certified can be
found on the National Organic Program Web site at
www.ams.usda.gov/nop/FactSheets/CertificationE.html and
www.ams.usda.gov/nop/NOP/standards/CertReg.html.


Hmmm, so it looks like you have to basically document everything you do in your honey production and keep good records. It does not say specifically what criteria must be met other than below:

Type of operation. History of substances applied to land for the previous 3
years. Organic products being grown, raised, or processed. Applicant's
organic plan, which includes practices and substances used in production. The
organic plan also must describe the monitoring practices to be performed to
verify that the plan is effectively implemented, the record-keeping system,
and the practices to prevent commingling of organic and nonorganic products
and to prevent contact of products with prohibited substances.

Applicants for certification will have to keep accurate post-certification records for 5 years concerning the production, harvesting, and handling of agricultural products that are to be sold as organic.

I guess the 'history of substances applied to land' might include Varroa treatment, but that really doesn't clear things up. I may have never applied any substance to my "land" ever, but that doesn't mean my bees didn't forage in a tobacco field that could have been treated with who knows what...

I guess it all depends on what the 'certifying agent' says. All in all, it looks like a major headache to get your honey officially labeled as "organic"...

Thanks!
Jeff




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