#local raw honey
We sell both raw and pasturized honey, and the choice confuses many consumers. What's the difference?
Raw honey is honey as the bees eat it: extracted from the comb using a manual extractor, the honey is gravity filtered to remove bits of wax and other debris and then jarred. All the enzymes and vitamins are active, and this is the way honey has been enjoyed since ancient times. Honey is 18% water, so its lack of water and high acidity result in an inhospitable environment for bacteria, etc.. Honey's low water content means that it readily attracts and absorbs water, causing bacteria to literally be sucked dry. So long as it's kept sealed (never leave your honey lid off for long periods of time!), it will never spoil. Honey sealed in jars thousands of years old has been found perfectly intact and edible!
Pasturization is a relatively new process for honey, and involves heating the honey to 150 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-30 minutes. This process kills yeast, botulism spores, bacteria, etc. that may be lurking in the honey, inactivates the enzymes, plus liquifies the honey. It is well known that pasturized honey stays liquified longer than raw honey. American consumers like liquid honey, and partly because of the rise of the field of microbiology, it was believed that pasturized honey was a better and safer food. In ancient times, there were no kidney transplants, but today we have many people who have compromised immune systems, so for those individuals, pasturized honey is likely safer. Babies (less than 1 year old), and the elderly who are sickly, or those on immune suppressing drugs due to chemo or organ transplants should not eat raw honey, and should still exercise care with pasturized honey. While likely safer, there are no guarantees that even a pasturized product is "safe" although the risk is much smaller.No one can guarantee something is risk free, but we can make choices and reduce our risk accordingly.
Pasturization doesn't change the flavor, but it kills the enzymes, and lowers some of the B vitamins. Pollen is still in the honey, and it still works fantastically on cuts, or as a face or hair mask, or stirred into tea. We prefer our honey raw, but there is still a place for pasturized, and you should not pass up pasturized honey just because it is pasturized. When applied topically, it makes a great face wash or scalp mask!
One more thing: if you have allergies, you must be cautious with honey as the pollen content is variable and unknown. While most people find relief from allergies with honey, there is still the risk of an allergic reaction, so you take the honey at your own risk. We say this because it is a possibility, although we have never heard of anyone even anecdotally react to honey, pasturized or raw. Again, this is all about weighing the risks of living. Many people with allergies are willing to accept some risk here!
Disclaimers: Blog posts are opinions, not advice. One thing all beekeepers will agree on, is that if you ask 10 beekeepers what to do, you'll get 13 different answers. Beekeeping is alchemy, nature, and a bit of magic.
Copyright 2020 Philosopher Lane Honey. All rights reserved.
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