The SCD™ Knowledge Base

Honey - Sucrose In

Ed asks:
I have a question about honey.
I was talking to my father (who keeps a few bee hives) at the weekend
about honey and how it was allowed on the SCD™because it contains mostly
fructose and glucose. He said that it may also contain high levels of
sucrose because the beekeepers feed bees with sugar syrup. (When you take
their honey you have to give them food to keep them alive in the winter).
Also, I guess, some commercial beekeepers could just feed the bees syrup
to boost honey production. The honey made by bees when they are fed on syrup is very clear and runny, just like syrup.
So the question is: Should I worry about how much sucrose is in the honey
I am eating?
Christine answer:
My husband keeps some bee hives, something he learned from his
grandfather. We subscribe to 2 bee journals to try to keep up to date.
There most likely is not too much sucrose being given to bees becuz it is
not financially viable. It is done when there is a weak hive that does not
have enough of its own honey to get it back on its feet.
For example, if you want to start a new hive and you order some bees, you
would need to give them the sugar syrup for about a week to help them get
established. After that, they have made enough honey of their own. But if
you already have bees, you would give some of their honey to the new bees,
eliminating the need for sugar syrup altogether.
Usually, bees would have no need for the syrup. Beekeepers try to take
only a certain amount of honey when harvesting so that the bees will have
enough to get them through the winter. Again, it would not be cost
effective for them to feed the bees syrup all winter. So, unless the bees
were attacked by mold or mites which ruined their honey, no need exists to
give them syrup.
I think you will be pretty safe with your honey.