We believe honey should reflect the land, the seasons, and the bees — not a factory standard. Our honey is raw, seasonal, and as diverse as the forests and farms it comes from. We do not homogenize or pasteurize it, because we trust nature’s way more than industrial shortcuts. In this blog, I’ll take you behind the scenes of how we harvest, process, and care for our honey — and why it will always taste a little different, but always true.
We do not Homogenize the honey
Homogenization is done by large brands using machine to ensure a consistent taste across the entire year. Homegenization machines cannot be afforded by individual bee-keepers. So, the co-operative model works best, if a group has decided that they want to market their honey. And that is the model employed across the country. But this does not cover all beekeepers in every nook and corner our country.
The honey that we sell is only by 2 beekeepers. They collect honey from various organic farms, as mine, and also their farms. Their farms are nestled in the forests of Southern Western Ghats.
As a small regional brand, I have chosen to reach out to beekeepers and organic farmers in my vicinity only. This is to keep the procurement costs and footprint low. Homogenization will increase the energy footprint of my produce. And so, I do not intend to ever partake in it. With the support of my customers, I hope I will never have to.
We do not Pasteurize honey
You must have heard our glass bottles open with a pop when you open the lid after a long time. This is because of the carbon dioxide emitted because of the mild fermentation that must have occurred.
Large brands pasteurize the honey to extend the shelf life, to prevent fermentation. Pasteurization is a process that involves heating the honey to a specific temperature, typically around 63°C, and then rapidly cooling it. While this process claims to preserve more nutrition in the honey, it is also energy intensive. The energy from the sun is much more renewable than fossil fuel guzzling energy sources. Our attempt at Vivasayee’s Life has always been to find lesser and lesser energy intensive methods for processing food.
We do carry out a milder version of pasteurization. After the honey has been harvested, it is poured into large utensils. These utensils are kept in the intense summer sun for a few hours. This is to ensure the yeasts and other microbes in the honey become dormant to reduce chances of fermentation. I would request you to refrigerate the honey during summers if you are going away for a long time.
Let us eat, talk, sleep Bio-diversity
Organic farming promotes biodiversity. Honeybees thrive in organic farms than industrial farms. But, a lot of honey is marketed as mono-floral. A few years back, I had found this contradiction confusing. I then realized that most of the mono floral honeys were being produced and marketed in the Global North.
Temperate and sub-tropical regions support relatively lesser diversity than the tropics like the Southern States of India. And it is easier to isolate the honey based on certain species in temperate climates. This is because the flowering of various species occur during different seasons.
In south India, despite honeys being sold as mono-floral, they are more likely to have a diversity of taste. They also have varied nutrition in comparison to temperate climates. Because the flowering of various species overlap completely with each other. This is true especially during summer season. Another reasons is that it is tough to find monocultures in nature in the tropics compared to temperate regions.
Seasonal, Multi-Floral, Raw Honey by Vivasayee’s Life
We do not homogenize and pasteurize honey. That is why it is called raw honey.
Shelf life is a common query from the regular patrons who buy from us. A common belief is that honey has a long shelf life. The belief is that it is longer than the period mentioned on the bottle as mandated by the regulatory authorities. While that might be true, the honey from Vivasayee’s Life will definitely have a lower shelf life than larger brands in the market.
The honey that you buy from us is pure, local, seasonal and multi-floral. Diversity of flora in surrounding farms and Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve is high. This ensures that the micro-nutrients in the honey are also well distributed.
We also offer a subscription pack for certain products for 12 purchases – within a year of paying. Before checking out, please use the coupon code 4BIG6. You can avail a discount of 6% on subscriptions of honey, ghee and coconut oil.
If you stay with us at Vaanavil Farm Stay, i hope you are lucky enough to be here during a honey harvest. We want you to experience where your food comes from.
#vivasayeeslife #honey #purehoney #rawhoney
Shop Local, Organic, Pure, Seasonal Honey on Vivasayee’s Life.
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Regards
Sudhakar