Lesson 77: Selling Honey

What a honey label must say, keeping your honey legal and safe, and the rules for your state

Selling your extra honey to friends, neighbors or at a farmers market is one of the joys of beekeeping. Honey is a food, so food rules apply. The basics are the same everywhere; the details (licenses, where you can process, where you can sell) depend on your state, so check the insert below and your state's department of agriculture.

What a honey label must include

Under U.S. food labeling rules, a packaged food label generally must show:

1. The name of the food: "Honey." You may add the floral source (such as "Clover Honey") only if that flower is truly the main source.
2. Net contents: the amount in the jar, by weight for honey, in both U.S. and metric units (for example, "Net Wt. 16 oz (454 g)"), placed in the bottom 30% of the main panel of the label.
3. Ingredients: for pure honey, just "honey" (a one-ingredient food needs no separate list if the name says it).
4. Name and address of the producer, packer or distributor, including the ZIP code.
5. Nutrition facts, unless your business qualifies for an exemption (many small producers do; check the FDA rules).
6. Allergen declaration where it applies.

Good practice (not always required): - "Do not feed honey to infants under one year of age" (lesson 73). - A lot or batch number or harvest date so you can trace any problem (lesson 41). - "Crystallization is natural; warm gently to reliquefy."

Careful with claims. Don't make health or medical claims on your label. Words like "raw" and "pure" should be true. "Grade A" means the honey meets the U.S. grade standard, including 18.6% water or less (lesson 70).

Keep it pure and safe

• Nothing added. Honey mixed with sugar syrup, corn syrup or any other syrup and sold as honey is adulterated, which is illegal (lesson 73).
• Harvest correctly: follow mite treatment labels so no residues reach the honey (lesson 57). State and federal inspectors test honey for pesticides and antibiotics.
• Check the moisture (lesson 70) so honey won't ferment on the shelf.
• Process in a clean place, with clean equipment and containers (lesson 73).

Before you sell

• Check your state's rules: whether you need a license, where you may process (home kitchen or licensed facility), where you may sell (direct to customers, farmers markets, stores, online), and any limits on how much you can sell under a small-producer exemption.
• Check local rules: zoning, farmers market requirements.
• Selling to stores or wholesale usually means more requirements (licensing, a licensed facility, and often federal FDA facility registration).
• Keep records of your harvests and sales.

📍 Georgia

This insert is shown to customers in Georgia.

Georgia's rules come from the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA).

Small honey producers selling to the end user: you don't need a Food Sales Establishment License if you process and sell your own honey directly to household consumers: on your own premises, door to door, at a place of business you own and manage, or at fairs, festivals and farmers markets. You're still regulated by GDA: your honey must be processed in a sanitary environment and labeled correctly.

Everyone else needs a license: selling to stores or other retailers, wholesale, or in bulk requires a Food Sales Establishment License from GDA. Licensed facilities must meet construction, sanitation, water, plumbing and handwashing standards (for example, a two-compartment sink, screened openings, and living quarters separated from the processing area). Contact GDA before building or converting a facility. Producers who sell other than directly to consumers must also register their facility with the FDA.

Labels: GDA may review any label. The basic requirements match the federal list above: common name, net contents (with metric, in the bottom 30% of the main panel), ingredients, name and address with ZIP code, nutrition labeling unless exempt, and allergens.

Other Georgia points: - Honey mixed with sugar, corn or other syrups is adulterated. - Reused containers for honey must be cleaned and refilled in a regulated food plant. - GDA and FDA routinely sample honey for pesticides and antibiotics; follow the label on every hive treatment. - Licensed retail producers follow Georgia Rule 40-7-1 (Retail Food); wholesalers follow Rule 40-7-18 (Manufactured Food).

Questions: GDA's Retail Food Program or Manufactured Food Program, (404) 656-3627.

What to remember

• Honey is food: clean processing, nothing added, correct labels.
• Label: "Honey," net weight (oz and g) in the bottom 30%, name and address with ZIP, nutrition facts unless exempt.
• Add "no honey for infants under one" and a batch number as good practice; no health claims.
• Rules vary by state: check licensing, processing and where you can sell. In Georgia, direct sales to consumers need no license; stores and wholesale do.

Quick check

1. Where on the label does the net weight go, and in what units?
2. Can you call your honey "Sourwood Honey" if your bees made it mostly from clover?
3. In Georgia, do you need a license to sell your own honey at a farmers market?

Adapted from: Georgia Department of Agriculture, Basic Requirements for Honey Producers; USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Standards for Grades of Extracted Honey; UF/IFAS Extension, Honey and Its Uses (AA154).

Adapted from university Extension sources. Experienced Georgia beekeepers are reviewing these lessons. See something that doesn't match your experience? Tell us.