NZBF: Didn’t know I was a hoarder till I got bees

[Deon]

Started a few years ago with a nuc, now grown to 8 with hives, and gear to suit.
A couple of slow cookers and an electric frypan for wax processing.
Probably 10kg+ of processed wax & some 25 buckets of honey and still this years harvest to add.
I think I will sell some hive come spring drop back to three. (Said that last year also)
We are whangarei based with our property and neighbouring 12 acres being native bush and town being on the back fence our bees produce lots of really well balanced and tasty honey. We use and give away lots of honey but produce much more than we can use, might have a go at making mead to use a bit more, any tips, suggestions, yeast recommendations?

 

[kaihoka]

The novelty of lots of hives will soon wear off.
3 hives is a good number for a hobby .
You would be unlucky to have the lot die , unless you have to burn them , so you will always have at least one hive to build up from .
More hives equals more boxes equals more precious shed space to store gear .

 

[tristan]

We are whangarei based with our property and neighbouring 12 acres being native bush and town being on the back fence

keep in mind those areas are pretty atrocious for AFB.

might have a go at making mead to use a bit more, any tips, suggestions, yeast recommendations?

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its quite a big topic of its own and probably end up with as much brewing gear as bee gear.

 

[Bee2beeNZ]

As you are in Whangarei, why dont you join the local bee club and you would have access to their extraction facilities. Once the honey is extracted under legal conditions, you would be able to bottle and sell at the local farmers market and make money to buy even more bee equipment.

 

[tristan]

you would be able to bottle and sell at the local farmers market

would have to fight off the big long list of existing sellers first.
on the plus side, if you do it legally, just go when the inspector is doing his rounds and you will be the only one there

 

[kaihoka]

would have to fight off the big long list of existing sellers first.
on the plus side, if you do it legally, just go when the inspector is doing his rounds and you will be the only one there

there are a few local people selling honey .
i have no idea if it is legally processed.
i would not ask. i would really get up peoples nose if i made inquiries.

 

[tristan]

there are a few local people selling honey .
i have no idea if it is legally processed.
i would not ask. i would really get up peoples nose if i made inquiries.

i was joking.
however there has been fights between beeks over markets before and i know some time back there was a ton of dodgy selling going on to the point they would all avoid the inspector.
i have no idea on the current situation.

 

[AdamD]

As you are in Whangarei, why dont you join the local bee club and you would have access to their extraction facilities. Once the honey is extracted under legal conditions, you would be able to bottle and sell at the local farmers market and make money to buy even more bee equipment.

Minimal requiremetns in the UK for honey extracting as it is a 'low risk' crop so anyone can do it.

 

[Sailabee]

Minimal requiremetns in the UK for honey extracting as it is a 'low risk' crop so anyone can do it.

As the government regulatory body is working very closely with corporate beekeepers, the rules for extraction in NZ are plainly insane, with everything having to be stainless steel, and all registered and audited regularly at great cost in an effort to eliminate all small businesses, as well as the hobbyists. At some point, the penny will drop that there are far more hobbyists than corporates, and we ain't about to all roll over and stop beekeeping.

 

[Wknz]

Started a few years ago with a nuc, now grown to 8 with hives, and gear to suit.
A couple of slow cookers and an electric frypan for wax processing.
Probably 10kg+ of processed wax & some 25 buckets of honey and still this years harvest to add.
I think I will sell some hive come spring drop back to three. (Said that last year also)
We are whangarei based with our property and neighbouring 12 acres being native bush and town being on the back fence our bees produce lots of really well balanced and tasty honey. We use and give away lots of honey but produce much more than we can use, might have a go at making mead to use a bit more, any tips, suggestions, yeast recommendations?

I have hives in a community garden that is part of a community trust. The law let's them sell the honey as part of their fund raising on one occasion per year . I dont know how the law applies to you but if you were able to support a local charity it might help disperse your honey stores.

Thoughts?

 

[Wknz]

As the government regulatory body is working very closely with corporate beekeepers, the rules for extraction in NZ are plainly insane, with everything having to be stainless steel, and all registered and audited regularly at great cost in an effort to eliminate all small businesses, as well as the hobbyists. At some point, the penny will drop that there are far more hobbyists than corporates, and we ain't about to all roll over and stop beekeeping.

How does that look if you sell comb honey? I believe there are frames with comb boxes in them if memory serves me correctly.
It does Honeycomb Plastic Frames with 6 Honeycomb boxes

 

[Mummzie]

I have hives in a community garden that is part of a community trust. The law let's them sell the honey as part of their fund raising on one occasion per year .

but what are the requirements regarding the extraction of the honey?

 

[Deon]

It’s seems there is honey for sale everywhere, and the costs of getting mad approved and honey tested etc makes it seem not worth selling at hobbyist level.
I think best plan is to downsize.

 

[AdamD]

As the government regulatory body is working very closely with corporate beekeepers, the rules for extraction in NZ are plainly insane, with everything having to be stainless steel, and all registered and audited regularly at great cost in an effort to eliminate all small businesses, as well as the hobbyists. At some point, the penny will drop that there are far more hobbyists than corporates, and we ain't about to all roll over and stop beekeeping.

In the UK, stainless steel or food grade is a must and not a problem at all, although I still see galvanized extractors for sale on ebay now and again. I have a dedicated extraction room myself, however a kitchen is OK for small-scale hobbyists, provided you don't have dirty laundry and such-like lying around around. That's reasonable as "Honey infused with jock-strap" is probably not going to be a best-seller! The beekeepers name and address has to be on the jars so there's tracability and we do have regulations on the size of text for the weight of honey in the jars! We do have a reasonable Trading Standards system in place, so I have had honey that's been anonymously purchased from a shop and then tested, with the results sent to me afterwards.

 

[Sailabee]

In the UK, stainless steel or food grade is a must and not a problem at all, although I still see galvanized extractors for sale on ebay now and again. I have a dedicated extraction room myself, however a kitchen is OK for small-scale hobbyists, provided you don't have dirty laundry and such-like lying around around. That's reasonable as "Honey infused with jock-strap" is probably not going to be a best-seller! The beekeepers name and address has to be on the jars so there's tracability and we do have regulations on the size of text for the weight of honey in the jars! We do have a reasonable Trading Standards system in place, so I have had honey that's been anonymously purchased from a shop and then tested, with the results sent to me afterwards.

I have so problem with SS baskets and spindles in extractors, but in Auck, there used to be a guy making one which was housed in a rotationally molded food grade plastic exterior, and was far more robust for carting around in the car, or storing between seasons, which was all locally produced.