Honey Production In Texas Is Being Threatened. How Come?

Texas honey is some of the best in the country, hands down. Ok, maybe I'm a little biased because I live here, but I've never tasted a better honey than something locally made here in our great state.

There's a great little honey place in Canyon that I enjoy going to, but we've got some bad news wrapped around bees in Texas, and it could ultimately lead to a lack of honey production here.

Texas is widely considered one of the top beekeeping states in the country, but the weather patterns we've been going through lately have had a very adverse reaction on bees in the state, and beekeepers are concerned it's going to continue and have ripple effects.

Since June, Texas has seen a whopping 66% decrease in bee colony populations, and that is WAY over the normal, acceptable range of loss.

The acceptable range of loss? How about just 13-17%.

Between the extreme weather swings, overly hot summers and freezing winters, it's messing with the plant blossoming in Texas. Because of that, we're seeing a reduction in nectar that is essential for these honey bees to begin producing.

This isn't the first time we've seen an extreme loss in population. After the big freeze in 2021, we saw a 34% loss from April 2021 to April 2022. Extreme yes, but not nearly as extreme as the one we're experiencing now.

There are concerns that if the extreme weather swings, along with the droughts we've been experiencing continue, many beekeepers are going to have to just throw in the towel, ultimately destroying the production of Texas honey.