How to Label and Sell Your Honey Effectively and Legally

_{Ian Renton  | 16/08/2016 | Honey Labels,Labelling Laws}

If you harvest your own honey, then the chances are that you will have surplus honey and you will want to sell it. That means using appropriate honey labels.

Your honey labels must firstly satisfy the requirements of the law and secondly be designed to sell. Being an Australian food producer is both a curse and a blessing. Firstly, Australia has an international reputation as one of the cleanest and safest and highest quality producers of food anywhere in the world but the downside is that the food industry is highly regulated and if you plan to sell your honey, then you need to make sure your food labels are legal.

Fundamentals Of Honey Labels

Here are seven things to get started in producing honey labels that are both effective and legal.

1. Label your product. It is honey and this must be made clear on the label.
2. Your honey will most likely go in a jar so you need to measure the weight of your honey, i.e. how much honey is in each jar. If you use different sized jars, then you will need different honey labels.
3. Your details are also important. Before you start designing your label, you could also consider coming up with your own brand. This is important if you plan to produce honey in any great volumes. Until then, use your name, address and other contact details.
4. The ingredients are vital. In particular, is anything added to your honey? The nutritional component is also relevant. You should actually show percentages of the ingredients and also show what is the energy involved or how many kilojoules in your honey jar?
5. You also need dates. The date of harvest is important but a more relevant date is the use by date. How long will your honey last before it should be disposed of?
6. Storage is another factor. Should your honey be stored at room temperature, below 25 Degrees Celsius, in the fridge or in some other place?
7. Include your country of origin as Australia.

It is also helps if you can provide as much information as possible to your customers. For example are there any side effects of consuming honey. Is your honey raw or is it modified? Food poisoning from botulism can result from consuming raw honey so this means you need to make this point very clear to your consumers. Food poisoning from botulism can result from consuming raw honey. It is uncomfortable for adults but is dangerous for babies under 12 months of age. If your honey is raw, then include the risks and the benefits but if your honey is not raw, then the benefit is a low or zero risk of illness from consuming your honey. Back in 2014, the topic of my blog was Use jam labels to market your jam effectively. This blog is worth reading because the same principles apply to selling more honey as they do to selling more jam.