Honey Production Numbers Fell
Saturday, March 28th, 2015 -- 7:33 AM
Honey production from producers with five or more colonies in Wisconsin totaled 2.86 million pounds in 2014, a 19 percent decrease from the 2013 harvest.According to the USDA, the number of honey producing colonies in the state fell from 59,000 colonies to 53,000 colonies last year. This number does not include producers with fewer than five colonies or producers who did not harvest a crop.
Yield per colony in the Badger State averaged 54 pounds, which is the lowest yield since 1986. Wisconsin ranked 15th in the U.S. in honey production during the past harvest season.
National honey production in 2014 was 178 million pounds, up 19 percent from the previous year.
The U.S. had 2.74 million honey producing colonies, which is four percent more than in 2013. The average yield was 65.1 pounds per colony, a 15 percent increase. Honey producers had 41.2 million pounds of honey in stock, up eight percent from a year earlier.
The U.S. average honey price per pound for all marketing channels was a record $2.16 in 2014, up slightly from 2013.
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