Raw honey--Where do you find the best deal online?

[JadeOrchidSong]

I bought the "raw" honey at 12#/$27, which is great price. The catalog says, "Our honey is RAW and unfiltered, heated only slightly to allow pumping into containers."

When I got it last Saturday, it looked exactly like the regular honey with a clear runny look, which has me doubt how much it is "heated". Granted it is still great price. But I do want the really raw honey without breaking my bank. Do you know any good places to buy real raw honey online at a great price?

When I make granola, I use honey and coconut oil and of course the honey is heated to 300 degrees in the oven and the enzyme is killed anyway. But we also use it a lot to spread on our pancakes or peanut and honey sandwiches. I would love to get the benefits of raw honey.

Thank you!

[Sue G in PA]

I love raw honey from the Really Raw Honey Company (based in Baltimore). I think you can get a pretty good deal on Amazon. We buy local but I have priced it online just to see the difference.

[In The Great White North]

If they took the honey out of the hive in this weather, it would be as runny as if they had heated it. If they shipped it in this weather, it would be as runny as heated honey (our mail trucks are not air conditioned.) And would filter rather well. It could very well be truly unheated honey.

 

If you want thick honey, that has obviously not been filtered, at this time of year, you'd have to get it locally. And ask about it.

[mommymilkies]

Can I ask where you got your 12# of honey? I've been looking for some raw and it's over $10 for a 1/2 pint at the HFS here.

[LauraGB]

Have you scoped out your local farmer's markets? A lot of local bee keepers don't have a website (sometimes they are older and don't want to mess with it). I would check those markets first. Then, you might look on http://www.localharvest.org for something in your area. At least this way you get local honey made from things bees would naturally eat in your area, and you'd skip crazy shipping prices. 2qts of raw honey from the local supplier from whom I get mine is $15.

[JudyJudyJudy]

I would definitely look for someone local instead of buying online. We are beekeepers, and we don't heat our honey at all. Since we don't do huge quantities like big companies do, we don't need to heat it in order to get it into containers; I think that is true for most small local beekeepers.

[JadeOrchidSong]

I got this one gallon (about 12#) raw honey for $27 from Country Life Natural Food. They deliver every two months to one of our homeschool co-op members' home and we go pick it up. If you can get enough people to buy from them, they will deliver for free. I buy organic oats for 25# at $21.25 and organic wheat berries 25# for $15. I started to grind my own whole grain wheat flour with Blendtec two months ago.

I hope it is true that because of the weather and the deliver truck being so hot, the honey is naturally runny.

We do have a local beekeeper who sells raw honey to the homeschool co-op. It is about two cups at $7.5, which is quite good, but more expensive than the Country Life one. I think I will buy both kinds to get the benefits of both the quality of local honey and the good price of Country Life. So in the end it evens out. That is how I buy organic food and non-organic food. I buy organic food when it is on sale at a good price and also buy non-organic to even out the expense since I can't possibly go all organic. Thanks for the help.