when and how to kill off the hive

[gmcharlie]

Nope the math is right on...if I posted what I was getting retail I am afraid everyone would move to my area.

Hmmmm then your wholesaler is a fool..... he can drive anywhere in the midwest and beat that price by at least half..... some real specialty honeys may be that high, but when 99@ of retail honey is in the 3-4lb price range you can't pay much more than that and be around more than a year....

[Countryboy]

some real specialty honeys may be that high,

You think there is a chance he sells a specialty honey?

Around here, an 8 oz Ross Round wholesales for $3.50. A 12 oz cut comb sells for $5.00 wholesale. A plain 16 ounce bottle wholesales for $3.50 too. And we aren't even into the specialty honeys yet. You can get premiums if you don't use chemicals in your hive, or have them on certified organic farms.

You may not be able to wholesale semi loads for $5 a pound, but a good marketer could move 1000 pounds at $5 a pound.

Hmmmm then your wholesaler is a fool

And depending on the retail price that wholesaler gets - that wholesaler may be a genius.

[alpha6]

Hmmmm then your wholesaler is a fool..... he can drive anywhere in the midwest and beat that price by at least half..... some real specialty honeys may be that high, but when 99@ of retail honey is in the 3-4lb price range you can't pay much more than that and be around more than a year....

That's because most of the retail honey you buy is mixed with imported crap and I wouldn't pay you 10 cents for it.

Around here and not just locally but through most of Colorado now sustainability and buying local is a big deal. I am getting more and more requests for my honey in bulk and there is no negotiation on the price. I know I can't be the only one that is tapping this market. Maybe if others weren't in such a hurry to dump their product at rock bottom prices it wouldn't be so hard to believe.

[Chick]

Why don't you do a combine of your weak hives with your strong? Then come spring, just split and buy a queen?

[sqkcrk]

Why are you feeding honey to the bees and not sugar? I can sell 200 lbs of honey for 1000 bucks wholesale!! I can buy 200 lbs of sugar for $95.20. Yeah, I would call that a serious math error.

If I sold my honey at your farmers market I could probably get the same price as you. I bet you are not talking about 55 gallon drums full, especially not by the truck load.