We are so proud of the quality of the award winning honey we produce and it goes into a wide range of other products we sell – including chutneys, marmalade, fruit curd and honeycomb.
Another reason to visit our shop – We have a new zero-waste area in the shop, you’ll find dispensers full of organic pasta, pulses, lentils and beans allowing you to restock your cupboards without all the single use plastic bags and cans. We sell reusable draw-string cloth bags that you can fill up and bring back time and again, or bring your own containers. You can also come along with an empty jar and we will refill it for you with our delicious Devon Honey!
We have a larger selection of products at our shop in South Molton but you may be able to find a few essentials online today! Take a look…
We also sell gift vouchers – The gift voucher can be for any amount, with a 12 month expiry date, and can be redeemed across any part of Quince Honey Farm be it the Gift Shop, Nectary Restaurant, Tours, Workshops or Play Hive. Call to purchase these 01769 572401
More information about our honey…
All our honeys are pure and unpasteurised. The term ‘raw honey’ comes from the USA where a substantial proportion of their honey is pasteurised (heated to 70°C or more and highly filtered). There is no legal definition here in the UK, so we prefer to use the term “pure” to describe our honey, although all of our honeys do meet the common criteria associated with the term “raw”.
We warm our honey gently, only for as long as necessary, to allow us to move it through the production areas before bottling in jars. Honeybees themselves use their collective body temperature to warm the hive, which can reach around 40-45°C. As long as the temperature does not significantly exceed that, the honey is not pasteurised.
The filtration we use is minimal, using a coarse 200 microns sieve which ensures the pollen grains stay in the honey. This retains the wonderful, distinctive taste and all the health benefits associated with honey, something which is removed when it is pasteurised. We do not add anything, it is all honey from our own hives.
Pasteurising honey also stops crystallisation, which is a completely natural process and happens to all honeys that have not been heat treated. It is perfectly normal for your honey to crystallise or set over time. The speed it happens depends on how it has been stored and the type of honey it is, as different forage plants contain different ratios of natural sugars. If your honey sets and you would like it to be smoother, you just have to gently warm it by placing the jar of honey in a bowl of hot water.
