She’s the bee’s knees

I grew up in Paarl in the Western Cape and from my early childhood I've had a connection and fascination with nature. My journey with bees and honey has been a roller-coaster ride from the day we discovered that a wild swarm of honey bees set up home in our irrigation box in our garden in Gauteng about six years ago. 

It is a privilege to work with bees and they keep me humble. Over time, I’ve realised and discovered I'm merely one of their instruments. Honouring their hard work keeps me focused. When I came to understand how honey was produced and discovered the plethora of colours, flavours and aromas of raw honey, I was simply blown away.

What drives me? I have a deep sense of justice, and when I discovered that consumers are often exposed to honey that has been so compromised (it is said that honey is fast becoming one of the most adulterated food items in the world) and with my understanding of what it takes for the bees to make honey I have decided the world needs to know this and so started my journey with bees.

Honey bees are only one of about 22,000 bee species in the world. Many of these species are not easily identifiable. South Africa is home to only two subspecies of honey bees —  the Apis mellifera scutellata, or the Savannah honey bee found in the southern and eastern regions of Africa, and Apis mellifera capensis, or the Cape honey bee, found in the Western Cape and parts of the Eastern Cape — and is endemic to the unique Fynbos ecoregion in the country. Apis mellifera scutellata is known for its highly defensive behaviour while Apis mellifera capensis tends to be a more docile honey bee, but can also become defensive when provoked.

The need for comprehensive honey testing is becoming a key requirement in the face of food fraud and honey adulteration. The birth of LYON RAW Artisan Honey was partly inspired by the need to not only showcase the incredible diversity of honeys found in South Africa, but also to create a platform where trust and transparency is at the heart of what we do to ensure the consumer is offered the highest possible quality of small batch honeys.

Due to the complex nature of honey there is no single test which can verify the authenticity of honey. Rather, laboratories use a collection of specialised tests. To date, there are no laboratories in South Africa accredited to perform comprehensive honey authentication/adulteration tests, most samples are sent to Europe for testing, which is very costly.

What is a honey sommelier? Much like wine and olive oil, honey sommeliers analyse and describe the organoleptic properties of honey. Honey, however, is far more complex than wine or olive oil as the honey bee can forage up to 10km from their hive in search of nectars, plant saps, pollen and honey dew. Italy is the world leader in training honey sensory analysis experts, the technical term for students who are certified by The Italian National Register of Honey Sensory Experts. I soon realised how complex honey is, and signed up for the course which offered in-person training. The finals were three days of gruelling exams where a dozen candidates from around the world had to reach a minimum of 70% in each category to earn a pass. The exam comprises of blind olfactory analysis, discriminatory tests, olfactory and gustatory tests, triangular selections and finally a theory exam. I was one of only five who passed the 2023 exam and entered into the Italian Register of Honey Sensory Experts. 

Natasha's tips for buying

• Not all honeys are the same. Honey comes in different colours, flavours and aromas;
• Raw, unheated honey is the best. Avoid extreme temperature fluctuations;
• Try to buy from local beekeepers;
• Educate yourself on how the honey was processed. Honey which is heated in excess of 40°C may impact negatively on heat sensitive health properties;
• Read the labels. A blended honey does not necessarily mean it is an adulterated honey. Rather, it infers that honey from different origins are blended together;
• All foreign honeys are irradiated;
• Aged and reheated honey can negatively affect the properties of honey; and
• All honey will crystallise over time. This natural progression of crystals does not impact on the aroma, flavour or the innate health properties of honey. Place crystallised honey in warm water to return it to liquid state. Never microwave honey.

Lyon is the founder of LYON RAW Artisan Honey and is passionate about bee conservation. She is a beekeeper, bee guardian and a leading authority on honey. LYON RAW Artisan Honey offers honey tasting experiences and sells a range of top quality raw honeys.

www.lyonraw.co.za

Instagram @lyonrawhoney

Cover of the book

The Honey Bee Takes Flight: A photographic journey by Sharon Crouse and Natasha Lyon

Photographer Sharon Crouse followed bees for hours and hours, often in the sweltering heat and it was these photographs, selected from over 12,000 pictures taken over four years that inspired these ladies to publish the book.

It is a passion project that showcases South Africa’s two subspecies honey bees. The idea is to lure the reader in visually and take them on a visual journey of what the honey bee may encounter during her foraging flight. Described as a functional photographic art piece, the book aims to deliver a conservation message of protecting pollinators, their biomes and emphasise the importance of biodiversity.

Sales of The Honey Bee Takes Flight raise funds for WWF bee conservation and pollinator biodiversity projects. Available from www.lyonraw.co.za

In A Box

The sting in the tail

In summer when gardens will be in full bloom the worker honey bee visit around 100 flowers per foraging fight, flying up to 28km/h. With about 10 foraging flights a day, each bee could pollinate around 1,000 flowers. This figure can easily go up to a maximum of 40 foraging flights a day. If 20,000 bees take flight many times a day, 20 million flowers or more are being pollinated. Therefore, the risk of being stung increases during spring and summer.

Once a bee has stung, ensure to scrape the stinger out as soon as possible — use your finger nail or credit card or anything with a sharp edge. Never pull out the stinger as this will release more venom from the poison sac, which acts like a contracting muscle and keeps injecting venom after the actual sting occurred. Apply raw honey, a cold press or ice to reduce swelling, which also helps with the pain. Swelling can take a while to subside depending on the individual and location of sting. Seek immediate medical attention if severe allergic reaction occurs.