Yesterday, USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) released its monthly Sugar and Sweeteners Outlook, which stated in part that, “U.S. honey production in 2016 totaled 161.9 million pounds, a 3.4-percent increase from 2015 based an increase in colonies. There were 2.775 million colonies in honey production in 2016, a 4.3-percent increase from the previous year and the highest number of colonies in production since 1994. Honey yields of 58.3 pounds per colony were down a slight 0.9 percent from 2015 but were in line with levels of the past 5 years.”
Graph from, “Sugar and Sweeteners Outlook.” April 17, 2017 (USDA-ERS).
The ERS update noted that, “Stocks held by honey producers totaled 41 million pounds in 2016, a 2.3-percent decline from the previous year. Stock levels in 2016 were in line with the 10-year average, however. National average honey prices were 207.5 cents per pound, which is 0.4 percent below the revised 2015 price. It also represents the second consecutive year of annual decline in national honey prices. Honey producers have experienced a sustained upward trend in prices since the late 1990’s through 2014 as apparent domestic honey use increased. As demand has leveled off the past few years, prices have also plateaued, although both prices and demand remain substantially higher than in any historical period.”
Graph from, “Sugar and Sweeteners Outlook.” April 17, 2017 (USDA-ERS).
Yesterday’s USDA report also explained that, “Trends in production of individual States are well reflected in the number of colonies producing honey in each State; production is influenced by honey colony yields, which can vary widely due to conditions that change from year-to- year, such as weather. Many States have had a gradual increase in colonies over the past 5 years, with growth leveling off or even slightly declining in the last 2 or 3 years. California, which once had the greatest number of colonies in the country–peaking at over 500,000 in 1999–has seen honey bee colonies declining steadily since 2010; although the number rebounded slightly in 2016. This trend is likely due to a combination of factors, including sustained drought conditions in recent years and competition for bee colonies in the pollinator markets, which are in high demand in the State, rather than a focus on honey production.”
Graph from, “Sugar and Sweeteners Outlook.” April 17, 2017 (USDA-ERS).
The ERS update stated that, “By contrast, honey bee colonies in the aggregate All Other States have had the strongest and most sustained growth over the past 5 to 10 years. This could indicate that honey producers are finding demand within their local markets, although there is limited data on honey marketings for concluding how honey production and consumption interact from a geographical and industrial organization standpoint.”
