Honey extraction and batch record

Each jar should carry a code that identifies the batch it came from. Trading Standards guidance says a best before date can serve as the lot mark if it gives at least the day and month; otherwise use a separate code, ideally starting with “L”, such as L2607. A lot mark is advisable even for honey sold loose.

Prepacked honey needs a best before or best before end date, which you choose as the producer. Trading Standards suggests always giving the day, month and year, for example Best before 30 Nov 2028, which also lets the date double as the lot mark. Honey sold loose, or prepacked for direct sale, does not need one.

For a prepacked jar in England and Wales: a name, such as honey or heather honey; the net weight in grams, at least 4 mm high; a best before date; the producer’s or packer’s name and address; the country of origin, such as Produce of England; and a lot mark, unless the best before date gives the day and month.

So you can trace every jar back to its supers, hives and last varroa treatment, and withdraw a batch if there is a problem. The NBU notes that you may face enforcement action if unauthorised veterinary medicines are found in honey sampled from your hives, and a clear record is how you show what went into each batch.

Avoid both. SRUC’s honey module for Scottish beekeepers says neither word is recommended, because both are difficult to prove. Keep health claims off the label too. Floral and regional names are allowed only if the honey comes wholly or mainly from that plant, or wholly from that place.

Yes, if it is all sold under the same name and meets the same standards. Keep out any honey that has begun to ferment, check the water content of the blend, and do not mix two honeys you will sell under different names. Record which apiaries and hives went into the batch so it can still be traced.