Real Texas HoneyTM

Buy Real Texas HoneyTM From Real Texas Beekeepers

Texas Agriculture Matters – Honeybees

Texas bees and Texas beekeepers work hard to bring you quality Texas honey. Real Texas HoneyTM is a Texas non-profit organization that promotes honey 100% produced by honey bees in Texas. Participants must meet strict Program Requirements to ensure that the honey they sell displaying the Real Texas HoneyTM seal is pure, unadulterated honey made by honey bees in Texas.

When you see the unique Real Texas HoneyTM seal on a jar of honey you have added assurance that the honey is the real thing. Participants in the program are subject to inspection by members of a five-member board appointed by the Texas Beekeepers Association, and random honey samples undergo pollen testing and nuclear magnetic resonance testing to determine if the honey is unadulterated and produced from Texas nectars.

The Honey Locator at the bottom of this page is a service provided to connect consumers with beekeepers. It is an interactive map to show where beekeepers are in the state, along with their contact information.

This guide is also meant to educate consumers so they can ask more direct questions about where the honey they buy comes from and how it is processed. Talk to your local beekeeper. Ask how many hives they personally manage, where they are located, how much honey they produce each year, and how they strain and warm their honey before you buy it. Their answers will be telling.
Best of all, KNOW YOUR BEEKEEPER – KNOW YOUR HONEY!

Why support your local Texas beekeeper?

  1. Support your local agricultural community.
  2. Keep your hard-earned money local.
  3. According to the USDA-ERS and USDA-AMS about 70% of honey sold in the US is imported.
  4. Be confident you are purchasing real Texas honey.
  5. The USDA and FDA do not define nor regulate terms to describe honey like raw, local, natural, or unfiltered.
  6. Real Local Raw honey contains local pollens.
  7. Help keep Texas honey bees alive by supporting your local beekeeper.

Real Texas Honey™ beekeepers have agreed to market their honey by applying the following definitions:

Honey – A sweet substance produced by Honey Bees strictly from plant nectar.

Raw – Raw honey has not been heated above 120°F. Natural enzymes and some of the benefits of honey are weakened or destroyed if honey is heated significantly.

Unfiltered – Unfiltered honey naturally contains small particles like bits of wax and pollen grains in the liquid honey. Coarse straining, which retains the nutrients and pollen, is allowed to remove the larger of these particles. Honey packers often ultra-filter their honey to extend shelf life before crystallization. This process removes all pollen and they are not eligible for the Real Texas Honey™ program. Real Texas Honey™ will contain pollen as collected by the bees.

Pure– 100% Honey, with no additives, flavorings, or adulterants. Texas Agriculture Code further adds that “Pure honey” means the nectar of plants that has been transformed by, and is the natural product of, bees and that is in the comb or has been taken from the comb and is packaged in a liquid, crystallized, or granular form.

Local– Local honey is produced and consumed in the same eco-region, and contains the same pollens as local flowers and plants. Please see the Honey Locator to find local honey in your area.

Honey Producer– A beekeeper who produces 100% of his own honey.

Honey Producer/Packer -A beekeeper who produces 100% of his own packaged product.

Honey Packer/Producer – An individual who produces 30% or more of his packaged product.

Crystallized honey – Most Texas honey will crystallize or granulate naturally over time. To restore it to its liquid state just warm it gently in hot water, but never in a microwave oven. Real honey never spoils unless it ferments due to excess moisture.

Real Texas Honey™ Locator Map

– Real Texas Honey™ Members

If you are a Texas beekeeper, agree to the Program Requirements, and would like to apply to be a participant in the Real Texas Honey™ program, and inclusion on the Honey Locator, please click on our Real Texas Honey Application.