Sweet as Honey
eptember is National Honey Month, so we’re chatting with local beekeeper Nick Bofill to learn all the sticky details about this nutritious nectar.
Nick Bofill, a Miami native, has been a beekeeper for nearly a decade. His company, The Native Guy, specializes in beekeeping, honeybee education and hive removal in the tri-county region. He also sells his honey and other hive products sourced from his hives, which are located throughout the state.
Why do you love bees?
Being in front of a beehive—as corny as it sounds—it’s so majestic and beautiful. To this day, I still can’t explain what their energy does when you’re near them.
What are the types of honey?
In Florida, we have a wide variety of honey, including orange blossom honey, wildflower honey, saw palmetto honey, mangrove honey, and exotic tropical honey like mango and lychee.
Besides honey, what else does a hive produce?
Propolis is a resin-like substance the bees create from tree sap that can be used as an antimicrobial to clean wounds. Royal jelly is what they make to feed the queen, and it’s great for anti-aging. Forget the Botox! Beeswax is excellent in candles because it’s a natural air purifier. I also created an environmentally friendly, reusable food cover from it that can be used to preserve food instead of cellophane or aluminum foil.
Filtered or unfiltered honey?
The filtration process is important. You don’t want extra “friends” in your honey.
What about organic honey?
Organic honey doesn’t exist. You can’t have a hive with thousands of bees and have them on a leash. There’s no control. They will go to any flower they’re attracted to, and in the process, they could land on asphalt, gasoline, or chlorine. Unless you live on a mountain in Washington, then maybe. But from what I’ve seen, that’s just a cute word they put on bottles.
What’s your advice for novice beekeepers?
Attend Bee College at the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. Just like there’s a right way of becoming a lawyer or a doctor, it’s the same idea. Learn the laws and the proper practices for becoming a beekeeper. And remember, it’s illegal in Florida to relocate a beehive unless you’re a registered beekeeper.
What’s a fun fact you can share?
It’s been estimated that as much as 1/3 of the world’s food production is directly tied to the pollination habits of honeybees and other pollinators like butterflies and bats.
