A more natural approach to beekeeping

12 June 2021

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Bees have been around for over 53 million years, so they know what they are doing. But the number of bees that live unaided naturally in our communities are declining as well as their habitat makes life a little more difficult for them, so we as local beekeepers selling honey try to help bees out and in return, we use the excess amount of raw artisan Honey that they produce as a reward for our efforts, to care and nurture them, to invest in them more and to keep food on our own tables, and more importantly to help them produce sustainable honey a carbon neutral raw Welsh honey.

For many years humans destroyed colonies to get at their precious plant-based sugar that we all know as Welsh Honey, but it does not mean even in the modern day that all beekeepers look after colonies in the same way. We here at Cilgwenyn Bee Farm try to look after the bees with great care, ethically, respectfully and in the most natural yet manageable way possible by using organic and natural beekeeping trying to ensure that it is one of the healthiest honey to buy. No chemical medications such as banned antibiotics nor any pesticides. No big honey production runs, just nice small batches of Carbon Neutral raw Welsh Honey for you to enjoy at home. As a small Welsh honey company, we simply cannot just buy ingredients off a shelf and voila, like a cake, we have some more honey! It takes time, it takes a whole ecosystem, it takes patience, and it takes an artisan. And when we are out of that honey for the year, we are out of it. We are not in China where they are, miraculously, able to manufacture it.

Sadly we cannot be certified organic, indeed we know of no place in the UK that can be as bees forage for miles as they cannot be controlled where they go nor can we dictate what people do on their own land legally. If you can find organic honey that is produced by bees in the UK, it’s probably fraudulent sadly. My advice if it says organic and it looks British, look at country of origin – if it says the origin is in the UK let Trading Standards know. We hope this does not spoil your breakfast! We could import certified organic honey, but why? More and more food miles and adding to climate change yet properties between raw Welsh Honey and Organic, even with different flavours and nectar sources, their healthy organic benefits and properties remain roughly the same. The only honey where there are massive differences in anti bacterial qualities are Manuka Honey. But that has its problems as its blended. If you looked at New Zealand’s own statistics they produce some 1,700 tonnes of Manuka Honey, yet 10,000 tonnes of Manuka are sold. I will leave that one with you.

With us using organic and natural beekeeping methods we hope that you experience artisanal honey as it should be, direct from the beehive and available through our raw honey shop where you can buy online. We produce carbon neutral honey, sustainable honey, raw honey from beekeepers and are proudly one of Wales’s leading ethical honey brands. With a little filtration to stop your teeth sticking on beeswax our aim is to bring you the very best which represents raw Welsh Honey as your taste buds travel the natural landscape with a taste of the Wild Welsh Flowers.

Is Welsh Honey good for me?

Raw Welsh Honey has been used medicinally for thousands of years and we feel it is one of the healthiest honey to buy, looked after through organic and natural beekeeping. Nobody knows when it was first used in this way but it is known that raw honey was used to heal in ancient Egypt, but raw Welsh Honey does have some modern data to support it. Our artisnal honey is known for several properties including:

• Being full of Antioxidants – Consisting of organic acids and phenolic compounds which can help lower blood pressure
• Brilliant at helping to keep allergic reactions at bay – including hay fever from pollen from a variety of sources such as wildflowers and trees
• Has an ability to improve cholesterol and lower triglycerides – helps to prevent heart attacks, strokes and reduce a major driver of type 2 diabetes
• Having antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties – Helps to heal wounds including use by the NHS from burns to ulcers
• It is an antifungal – also used by the NHS
• Great for your digestive system as a prebiotic – even effective against Helicobacter Pylori bacteria, a common cause of stomach ulcers
• A great source of fat free natural energy – better than any energy drink
• Sweeter than granulated sugar gram for gram – better for those with a sweet tooth and diabetic, and does not raise blood sugars as much as it has a lower GI
• Great for a cough or a sore throat – recommended by the NHS for upper respiratory infections

Nutritionally raw honey from Wales and used extensively across the UK has many properties. Each jar will be slightly different depending on the nectar source of that particular bee collecting it in time. Generally our local beekeepers selling honey online contains:

• Glucose and fructose sugars
• Enzymes
• Amino acids
• Minerals – including potassium, calcium and magnesium
• Vitamins including B and C
• Pollen

As great as the benefits sounds, we would always recommend a little restraint, as after all it is over 80% pure natural plant-based sugar. But it must be remembered that all these benefits are for raw unadulterated raw Welsh Honeyand as a ethical honey brand we ensure that each jar holds sustainable honey, carbon neutral Welsh honey. As a small Welsh Honey Company, this we feel this part is important to everyone. Should you have any suspicion about your Welsh Honey source and it is adulterated with sugar syrups you will not get the benefits as set out above. Why? Simply because if it’s adulterated it’s not pure raw Welsh Honey. Give us a go and taste the difference, directly through local beekeepers selling honey.