There’s honey… and then there’s local honey — fresh from your local area, made by happy bees living just down the road. If you’ve ever wondered why people swear by local honey, here are 7 benefits to whet your appetite....
1. Helps with hay fever & allergies
Like many beekeepers one of my reasons to start beekeeping was a desire for my family to eat local honey and benefit from its hay fever reducing properties. The science here is mixed – but my own experience is that having spent years taking 1 a day hay fever tablets I’ve taken none since becoming a beekeeper. I do believe it is because the honey I spread on my toast or stir into my tea contains trace amounts of pollen from the local area — giving my immune system a chance to build a sustainable tolerance, reducing my sneezing, snuffling and itchy eyes
2. Local honey simply tastes better
Local honey isn’t mass-produced, blended from 6 different sources, super heated and supercooled, or ultra-filtered to prevent granulation. That means it retains its rich, complex flavour (think flowers, hedges, trees and allotments). It’s gently filtered after being harvested from the hive, preserving all the original flavours as the bees collected. The best bit is – the human palate can taste the difference. Sometimes citrussy, sometimes floral, often like caramel, but most importantly, never bland.
3. Packed with nutrients & antioxidants
Good local honey contains enzymes, amino acids, and antioxidants, all added by the bees or created during the honey ripening process as the bees evaporate the excess water from nectar in the hive. It’s a natural energy boosting food, an anti-inflammatory for the gut and soother for sore throats and coughs. A teaspoon in tea or porridge goes a long way to improving your gut biome.
4. Reduces food miles & plastic use
Imported honey can travel thousands of miles in plastic tubs or oil drums. Local honey usually comes in glass jars with minimal additional packaging, a win for the planet, your wallet and your pantry shelf. From hive to table with hardly a carbon footprint.
5. Great for skin and hair care too
Local honey has natural antibacterial and humectant properties, making it lovely in skin care items, lip balms, and shampoo bars. It draws moisture into the skin while calming irritation. ️I put it in my honey & salt scrub bars to nourish skin after exfoliation. {ln
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6.Supports local bees & biodiversity
By choosing local honey, you're helping keep native bees thriving — not just honeybees in hives, but bumbles and solitary bees who also benefit from the sustainable pollinator friendly growing practices promoted by beekeepers. The benefits extend across your gardens, allotments, golf courses, park land and wild uncultivated areas. It’s a sweet win:win way to support nature.
7. You know where it comes from
When you buy honey from a local beekeeper, you can often meet them, ask questions, and learn how the bees are treated. There’s complete transparency, no mystery origins or dodgy additives sourced on-line. Just someone passionate about caring for local bees.