North Dakota Honey Promotion

The North Dakota Honey Promotion Fund is governed by the Board of Directors of the North Dakota Beekeepers Association. The Board consists of ten members that include a director at large, a president, a vice-president, and a secretary-treasurer; the six remaining members represent different geographic areas of the state. The North Dakota Department of Agriculture administers the fund.

The mission of the Honey Promotion Fund is “Market Development,” which is defined in state law as “research, promotion, and education programs toward better and more efficient production, marketing, and utilization of honey for resale.”

The Honey Promotion Fund is funded by a five cent per colony assessment on all bee colonies that are required by law to be registered with the North Dakota Department of Agriculture. Assessments are refundable after receipt of a written request from a contributing beekeeper within 30 days of the remission of fees to the Commissioner of Agriculture.

One main focus area of their promotion activities includes participation in the “Living Ag Classroom,” an educational program that teaches fourth grade students where their food comes from. Students from Fargo, Bismarck, and Minot rotate through about 15 booths learning about a variety of commodities produced in North Dakota. They also participated in the Morton County Ag Day and the North Dakota Farm Bureau’s “Special Assignment Pizza” in Williston which also targets young students.

The Honey Promotion Fund is also used to pay travel costs of speakers attending the annual convention of the ND Beekeepers Association. These speakers are generally USDA bee research scientists, extension specialists, and other honey bee experts brought in to educate our state beekeepers about diseases, pests, and other issues of importance to the industry.

Their promotional activities include providing honeystix, promotional brochures, and education materials such as videos and teacher’s guides to schools, Extension Service, etc.

The future activities and goals of the Honey Promotion Fund will continue to be education of youth, industry promotion, and research.

From Bee to Bottle:  The Basics of Honey

From the National Honey Board

Busy, Busy Bees

Honey bees are the only insects that produce a food consumed by humans. In one of the busiest yet most efficient factories in the world, a beehive, honey is produced by honey bees.

Honey bees are social insects, and there is a marked division of labor among the various bees in the hive.  Each colony contains one queen bee, 500 to 1,000 drones, and about 30,000 to 60,000 workers. The queen is the matriarch of the colony. The queen bee is nurtured on a special diet of royal jelly, and she is the only sexually developed female in the hive.

A few weeks after hatching, the queen mates with drones in flight. The drones, which are stout male bees that lack stingers, fulfill their single purpose in the colony by mating with the queen. During this “mating flight,” the queen receives millions of sperm cells that last her entire two-year life span. A productive queen will lay up to 3,000 eggs in a single day.

The sexually undeveloped female bees perform the work of the colony. Once hatched, these worker bees do a sequence of jobs—cleaning the nursery, caring for and feeding the larvae, collecting nectar, making wax comb, guarding the hive, and fanning their wings to keep the hive cool.

Pollination—The Bees’ Second Shift

Besides gathering nectar to produce honey, honey bees perform another vital function: pollination. As bees travel from blossom to blossom while searching for nectar, they transfer pollen from plant to plant which fertilizes the plants and enables them to reproduce. Crops such as almonds, apples, avocados, blueberries, cantaloupes, cherries, cranberries, cucumbers, sunflowers, watermelon, and many others rely on honey bees for pollination.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has estimated that about one-third of the human diet is derived from insect-pollinated plants, and the honey bee is responsible for 80 percent of this pollination. In addition, a 1999 Cornell University study indicated that the direct value of honey bee pollination to U.S. agriculture is more than 14 billion dollars.

Beekeepers

Beekeeping, as opposed to foraging honey from wild bee colonies, probably began at different times in different parts of the world.  Many experts agree that the first evidence of beekeeping appears in the paintings of ancient Egypt which date from around 25,000 BC.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that there are between 139,600 to 212,000 beekeepers in the United States. Most beekeepers (95 percent) are hobbyist beekeepers who manage less than 25 hives. About 4 percent are part-time beekeepers who keep from 25 to 299 hives. An estimated 1,600 commercial beekeepers manage more than 300 bee colonies each.

Beekeepers have to work long hours in the spring and summer. They examine their hives to ensure the colony has a healthy queen and that the colony is clean and free from disease. In order to keep the hives strong, beekeepers must place their hives in locations that will provide abundant nectar sources as well as water.

Depending on how the honey flows, beekeepers will usually harvest their honey in late spring to early fall. In the fall, beekeepers prepare their hives for winter, ensuring that each hive has adequate honey to feed the colony.

Many beekeepers also move their hives to warmer states during the winter. About one-half of all commercial beekeepers are migratory beekeepers. They rent their bees to farmers, following the pollination seasons of the various crops.

A Honey of a Food

Honey is a rich source of carbohydrates, consisting mainly of fructose (about 38.5 percent) and glucose (about 31.0 percent). The remaining carbohydrates include maltose, sucrose, and other complex carbohydrates. On average, honey is 17.1 percent water.

Honey also contains a wide variety of vitamins, such as vitamin B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, and pantothenic acid. Various essential minerals have also been identified in honey, including calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, zinc, and several different amino acids.

Honey contains further nutritional value in the form of several compounds which function as antioxidants. These antioxidants can help delay the oxidative damage to cells and tissues that occurs in our bodies. Some of the known antioxidant compounds found in honey are chrysin, pinobanksin, vitamin C, catalase, and pinocembrin.

The Many Uses of Honey

Honey is one of nature’s most versatile products. People all over the world enjoy the sweet flavor of honey. Honey is often used as a spread for breads, from flaky biscuits to nutty whole-grain muffins. People spoon honey into tea and drizzle it into smoothies. Honey adds a rich and tangy flavor to spicy barbeque sauces and fruity ham glazes. Many restaurants serve honey mustard salad dressings or honey butters. Honey is also used as an ingredient in a wide range of manufactured products, from honey graham crackers to honey beers.

In addition to its diverse culinary applications, honey is also used for energy. Research has shown that honey is a great pre-workout energy source, aiding an athlete’s endurance and helping the athlete’s muscles recuperate following the race or workout.

Throughout history, honey has been valued as a food and as a medicine. Many people use honey to soothe a cough or sore throat. Because of its antimicrobial properties, honey has also been used in beauty products and in dressings for wounds and burns.

Did You Know…

To make a pound of honey, the worker bees must collect nectar from millions of flowers. In order to communicate the location of nectar sources, the bees will perform several different and distinct dances.

Honey comes in a variety of forms including liquid, whipped, and comb. Liquid honey is free of any crystals or wax and is extracted from the comb in the hive by centrifugal force, gravity, straining or other means. Whipped honey is finely crystallized, yet creamy and spreadable. Comb honey is honey that comes as it was produced—in the honey bees’ wax comb.

The honey squeeze bear was created in 1957 and has remained a popular container for honey ever since.

• The practice of beekeeping dates back to the early Egyptians, but it wasn’t until 1852 that the wooden hive with movable frames which most beekeepers use today was perfected by Reverend L.L. Langstroth.
• The color and flavor of honeys differ depending on what blossoms the bees visit in search of nectar. Honey color ranges from almost colorless to dark amber brown and its flavor varies from light and mild to richly bold.
• There are more than 300 unique types of honey produced in the United States.
• On average, a hive will produce about 80 pounds of surplus honey each year.

Honey Recipes

From Zoe M. Wergeland, 2007 North Dakota Honey Queen

A Beehive of a Bundt

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Wisk together:

3 cups cake flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Mix:

1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups honey
7 eggs
3 tablespoons almond extract
¾ cup cream

Fold liquid mixture gradually into the flour mixture. Then add 1 cup sliced almonds. Pour mixture into a greased Bundt pan. Bake for 80 minutes. Test for firmness in the center. Let cool. Sift powdered sugar over the Bundt and drizzle with honey!

Peanut Butter and Honey Popcorn

Bring to a boil for 2 minutes:

1 cup sugar
½ cup light corn syrup
½ cup honey

Add and stir until smooth:

1 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Pour mixture over 3 quarts of popped popcorn. Stir mixture until the popcorn is covered. Pour finished popcorn on a cookie sheet to cool.

Bangkok Wrap

Ingredients:

1 cup grated carrots
1 cup grated cucumber
2 cups shredded cabbage
2 cups cooked rice
3 cups cooked, shredded pork roast
Salt and pepper, to taste
½ cup honey
½ cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chunky peanut butter
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 large lettuce leaves (iceberg or green leaf), blanched and patted dry with paper towel

In a medium bowl, combine carrot, cucumber, cabbage, rice, and pork. Season with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, whisk together honey, vinegar, peanut butter, cilantro, ginger, and garlic. Heat dressing in a small saucepan, stirring until thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes. To assemble wraps, lay lettuce leaves on work surface. Spoon ½ cup pork mixture in center of leaf. Drizzle each wrap with 2 tablespoons dressing. Fold in sides to wrap.

*Preparing Pork for Your Favorite Wrap: Season a 1-1/2 lb. boneless pork roast with salt and pepper; brown on all sides in a hot nonstick skillet with a little olive oil. Add ½ cup chicken broth or water to pan, lower heat; cover tightly and simmer for 1-1/2 hours, until roast is very tender. Check pan occasionally for liquid level; if broth has evaporated, add a little more to pan to maintain a moist cooking environment. Remove roast from pan, let cool slightly and shred or chop pork coarsely. A 1-1/2 lb. roast will yield 4 cups of pork. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate up to 4 days, until ready to use. Serve cold or reheated.

Honey Roasted Cashews

Combine:

3 cups cashews
½ cup honey
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
½ teaspoon grated orange peel
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
A pinch of ground cardamom

Mix all ingredients well. Microwave on high (100%) for 4 to 7 minutes or until nuts are toasted, stirring halfway through cooking time. Spread nuts on a cookie sheet to cool.

Honey and Spice Squash

Ingredients:

1 lb. acorn or butternut squash
¼ cup honey
¼ cup chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
¼ teaspoon cinnamon or cardamom

Halve squash lengthwise and remove seeds; arrange in baking dish and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high (100%) for 12 to 16 minutes or until tender. Remove skin and cut pulp into cubes; place in 1 quart microwave-safe dish. Combine remaining ingredients; mix well. Spoon mixture over squash. Microwave on high power for 45 to 60 seconds or until thoroughly heated.

Conventional Method: Prepare and arrange squash in pan as above, but do not cover. Bake, cut side down, in greased baking dish at 350 degrees about 45 minutes or until tender. Or, pierce squash several times with fork and bake whole for about 1 hour. Remove skin and cut pulp into cubes; place in 1-quart baking dish. Combine remaining ingredients; mix well. Spoon mixture over squash. Return to oven and bake at 400 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes or until top begins to brown.

Honey Carrot Soup

Ingredients:

1 lb carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 onion, chopped
1 cup 2% low-fat milk
¼ cup honey
Ground nutmeg
Minced chives

Place carrots, onion, and chicken broth in large saucepan. Cover and simmer over medium heat about 15 minutes or until carrots are tender. Transfer mixture to blender or processor; blend until smooth. Return to saucepan. Add honey and milk. Return to simmer. Serve hot sprinkled with nutmeg. Garnish with chives. May be served chilled, if desired.

Honey Tips

Honey is a healthy and easy substitute for sugar in most baked goods. When substituting honey for sugar in baked goods, here are some helpful hints:

• Reduce the liquid in the recipe by ¼ cup for each cup of honey used.
• Add about ½ teaspoon baking soda for each cup of honey used.
• Reduce oven temperature by 25 degrees to prevent over-browning.

Note: Honey should not be fed to infants under one year of age.  Honey is a safe and wholesome food for older children and adults.