I do commercial sanitary audits for the DOD. I've been to companies as small as one guy cooking in a food truck all the way up to big places, like Tyson, Nestle, and Sara Lee. I've dealt with QA "teams" consisting of a 24 y/o Amish guy with an 8th grade education all the way up to a PhD microbiologist leading a team of 5 people all HACCP/HARPC trained with decades of experience. The food defense portion is usually where I do the most scrutiny. I can't say I've ever seen anyone apply a seal to every container that stores "raw materials". I'm impressed. Usually it's just the truck that is sealed, but those are enclosed. I suppose that if it is shipped on an open truck, the sealing makes sense. Good job!
Hi from southern New Zealand 👋 Otago district in New Zealand is the same way with honey and food safety. Honey from certain parts of Otago also has to be tested for tutin toxin ( a extremely poisonous NZ plant that produces very toxic honeydew honey secreted by the NZ vine hopper, similar to an aphid) as well but the plant doesn't occur in central Otago thankfully. It does on the coast though. I think it's worth the time because if you're confident your equipment and processing area is clean you can be confident you're selling a quality product to your customers 👍👋
Bob, this reminds me of all the hoops I jumped through to register our EZ-OX oxalic acid products, and we continue to do so to maintain and keep our registrations. Both the FDA in your case and the EPA in mine, have regulations we must follow.
Great discipline on the cleaning Bob, that is one thing that is easy to say, oh it's OK. And not do it. Also when inspectors and clients come in, they get that feeling of clean and organized. You Don't get a second chance to make a first impression. Great video Bob, appreciate you doing these
Thanks so much for sharing! I am wanting to get Certified with the Department of Agriculture and this is very helpful. Your videos are always informative and learn something from them all.
Another very useful video. Traceability is the way us real honey producers can have substantial clout to say “this is all real honey” here’s why!! I was always reminded of the expression “A clean and tidy ship is an efficient ship” You will continue to sail very efficiently like this!! 😊🙌☑️🫶🤓
Interesting to see what goes into it. Reminds me when someone was messing with Tylenol bottles and that either started or accelerated safety seals on products. Tell John dont forget the top of the fire extinguisher which I am sure he just hadnt gotten to yet because he was being interrupted by the cameraman!
There is a scripture that says “cleanliness is next to godliness.” I understand why this is important in the food industry but it also impacts/ improves the feeling of a place ! Clean places are a joy to be in.. I have no doubt in My mind heaven is a well lit clean place … thank you for the clip I enjoy your videos!
I would love to see how Lou blends the honey. Thirty two drums at a time...amazing! John knows how to wield a vacuum?? Have him wear an apron next time. Miss y'all.
New buckets work fine because they should have the tear tab intact. We have to be more creative with used buckets but luckily we get very little honey in used buckets.
OK, I hope you offer the gray hoodie you are wearing and logo merch in your store online soon! Ballcaps too, I hope! How do you keep flies out of your shops?
We have a number of fly traps around the building that help. A small version of our new website with honey and candles is up now and as soon as we get the shipping module glitches out of it we'll start stacking stuff in there. In the mean time you can order anything over the phone at 706 782 6722. Thanks.
Every beekeeper big or small needs to know that the work place, store, bee yards, boxes and frames etc has to look like a FARMACY. I seen a comercial beekeeper inventory 3 years ago from S Texas that those boxes and frames were all dirty and unimaginable messy. I saw even worse ones in California having dirt on entrances on pallets and the boxes were decolorate and falling apart. I WAS SHOCKED knowing that they would put them in the almond orchard. My load was looking like FARMACY while those were looking like dumping stuff. Who makes top $? Anyway. Have a blessed day Bob.
We don't want our honey to vary a lot from batch to batch. The honeys we buy can be very different from region to region and by blending we can use them all up simultaneously without a huge difference between batches.
That has not been brought up by our inspectors or in the inspection guidelines. Perhaps because non employees are accompanied or perhaps if we were a bigger company. Every year brings new surprises so we'll see what comes next.
Looks like somebody likes root beer!! I’m hoping that importers have to do this with their containers they pack honey into. I would like to see random testing of imported honey to make sure it hasn’t been adulterated. If it has these seals then they can’t say someone else did it. Personally I think we should stop importing honey from most countries. Especially the known bad actors that flood the market with fake honey. Have a good week!!
I took a class on prossed food sales here in Michigan.. boy the regulations each food type has overwhelming .. just on how it's grown wild vs farmed there's regulations and those change depending on how it's cut prossed.. what I did learn is there's really no regulations until it's cut .. why Hooterville honey will only be selling whole frame comb honey uncut unprossed selling it right on frames .. your aloud one harvest cut under Michigan law .. call it a freebie so I could cut it from the frames legally without getting buried in regs .. Arabs only buy uncut unprossed it's medical for them and part of their culture.. I could go on and on about that.. fact is whole frame comb honey has 4x the value of prossed honey.. I'll have next to the sweet corn at Krogers by the end of summer and hopefully get some commercial operations producing it for me. They could even use that mountain of honey they all seem to be sitting on by feeding it back turning into whole frame comb honey.. I have one large commercial operation dipping his toe into it . Hopefully get more operations producing it for me...I'll have around 350 of my own units producing comb honey but that won't even scratch the surface .. there's 8 million Arabs south of Detroit.. they really don't care what's in the honey az long as the bees put it there.. I can't even start to understand their culture and history with honey bees but prossed just doesn't taste right they tell even when it's the same exact honey
i cannot decide whether this is completely useless or makes some actual value to the end customer... I guess it could prevent from some edge cases, though unlikely when you are doing trades within a single country.. one thing for sure, this is cumbersome and ... I dare to say it ... boring ;)
If you are requesting your employees to sign documents you must have a lawyer present acting on their behalf to countersign or the signature is null and void, and is useless. An employee is not permitted to enter into a contract within a contract, the first being the agreement of employment, it all gets quite messy legally. Oh by the way have you given any thought of returning to wooden hives as the evidence of chemical intrusion of the byproducts of polymer degradation within honey have already been proven to effect the reproductive organs of test animals and human tests are currently being investigated. There is a serious issue with the intrusion of polymers within the human food chain.
Sounds like you know a few things. I think we're OK because it's not actually a contract but just a recognition that they have read the page and understand it to satisfy the inspector. And yes I agree that polymers and plastics are becoming a big problem on endless levels. We touch and absorb them in so many ways.
I do commercial sanitary audits for the DOD. I've been to companies as small as one guy cooking in a food truck all the way up to big places, like Tyson, Nestle, and Sara Lee. I've dealt with QA "teams" consisting of a 24 y/o Amish guy with an 8th grade education all the way up to a PhD microbiologist leading a team of 5 people all HACCP/HARPC trained with decades of experience. The food defense portion is usually where I do the most scrutiny. I can't say I've ever seen anyone apply a seal to every container that stores "raw materials". I'm impressed. Usually it's just the truck that is sealed, but those are enclosed. I suppose that if it is shipped on an open truck, the sealing makes sense. Good job!
Great videos
Hi from southern New Zealand 👋 Otago district in New Zealand is the same way with honey and food safety. Honey from certain parts of Otago also has to be tested for tutin toxin ( a extremely poisonous NZ plant that produces very toxic honeydew honey secreted by the NZ vine hopper, similar to an aphid) as well but the plant doesn't occur in central Otago thankfully. It does on the coast though. I think it's worth the time because if you're confident your equipment and processing area is clean you can be confident you're selling a quality product to your customers 👍👋
Bob, this reminds me of all the hoops I jumped through to register our EZ-OX oxalic acid products, and we continue to do so to maintain and keep our registrations. Both the FDA in your case and the EPA in mine, have regulations we must follow.
Great discipline on the cleaning Bob, that is one thing that is easy to say, oh it's OK. And not do it. Also when inspectors and clients come in, they get that feeling of clean and organized. You Don't get a second chance to make a first impression. Great video Bob, appreciate you doing these
Thanks so much for sharing! I am wanting to get Certified with the Department of Agriculture and this is very helpful. Your videos are always informative and learn something from them all.
Good morning Bob and crew. Thanks for sharing.who would have thought that this world would change so much.
Hola Bob que lindo que organización que responsable es la chica está en todo 👏👏👏👏
Thanks for explaining why these kinds of rules make sense.
It’s always good to have an inspector who is cool. 😅. I have really enjoyed your videos. Thank you for sharing them!
Another very useful video.
Traceability is the way us real honey producers can have substantial clout to say “this is all real honey” here’s why!!
I was always reminded of the expression
“A clean and tidy ship is an efficient ship”
You will continue to sail very efficiently like this!! 😊🙌☑️🫶🤓
Thanks Richard. Good expression.
Good morning Bob, another unique and informative video from you and your team! This is what makes you and your honey as good as it is.
Thank you for the information. Also thank you for the call about the Kroger information. It means a lot to me for taking the time to call me.
oh my god that is crazy hats of to you man ....cheers
Thanks for this video, Bob. You have great colleagues.
Interesting to see what goes into it. Reminds me when someone was messing with Tylenol bottles and that either started or accelerated safety seals on products. Tell John dont forget the top of the fire extinguisher which I am sure he just hadnt gotten to yet because he was being interrupted by the cameraman!
Good morning Bob and BRHC, been waiting for you. Have a good wk.
Good morning, Bob and crew! Cleaning from top to bottom is a tedious task, but it'll definitely show when you're done.
There is a scripture that says “cleanliness is next to godliness.” I understand why this is important in the food industry but it also impacts/ improves the feeling of a place ! Clean places are a joy to be in.. I have no doubt in My mind heaven is a well lit clean place … thank you for the clip I enjoy your videos!
Thank You
If John’s going to be a cleaning lady get him a skirt!😂 have fun
I would love to see how Lou blends the honey. Thirty two drums at a time...amazing!
John knows how to wield a vacuum?? Have him wear an apron next time. Miss y'all.
Who knew?
Do you have or rent a scissor lift? I have a skyjack 3219, it’s so nice I can reach the 26 ft ceiling or drive around dump trucks when I paint.
We have a cage we can put on our forklift. Not as good as a scissor lift though.
👍😋
This is unrelated, but have you decided what our spring mite treatment is going to be?
We'll be doing mite washes all around soon and will decide after that.
Is that just for barrels? Buckets? May have missed that part
New buckets work fine because they should have the tear tab intact. We have to be more creative with used buckets but luckily we get very little honey in used buckets.
OK, I hope you offer the gray hoodie you are wearing and logo merch in your store online soon! Ballcaps too, I hope! How do you keep flies out of your shops?
We have a number of fly traps around the building that help. A small version of our new website with honey and candles is up now and as soon as we get the shipping module glitches out of it we'll start stacking stuff in there. In the mean time you can order anything over the phone at 706 782 6722. Thanks.
Such is the nature of the beast. Ultimately it guarantees a safe edible product. Thus, such safety is necessary!
I just had mine (only from the state) the other day
Good Morning Bob !
Good morning sir!
Every beekeeper big or small needs to know that the work place, store, bee yards, boxes and frames etc has to look like a FARMACY. I seen a comercial beekeeper inventory 3 years ago from S Texas that those boxes and frames were all dirty and unimaginable messy. I saw even worse ones in California having dirt on entrances on pallets and the boxes were decolorate and falling apart. I WAS SHOCKED knowing that they would put them in the almond orchard. My load was looking like FARMACY while those were looking like dumping stuff. Who makes top $? Anyway. Have a blessed day Bob.
❤
Why do you blend barrels together?
We don't want our honey to vary a lot from batch to batch. The honeys we buy can be very different from region to region and by blending we can use them all up simultaneously without a huge difference between batches.
Can we buy the honey by the drum?
Yes, call the store at 706 782 6722 for pricing and availability.
Are you requiring a copy of visitor’s Driver license and a visitor badge if they go past the store front ?
That has not been brought up by our inspectors or in the inspection guidelines. Perhaps because non employees are accompanied or perhaps if we were a bigger company. Every year brings new surprises so we'll see what comes next.
Looks like somebody likes root beer!! I’m hoping that importers have to do this with their containers they pack honey into. I would like to see random testing of imported honey to make sure it hasn’t been adulterated. If it has these seals then they can’t say someone else did it. Personally I think we should stop importing honey from most countries. Especially the known bad actors that flood the market with fake honey. Have a good week!!
I took a class on prossed food sales here in Michigan.. boy the regulations each food type has overwhelming .. just on how it's grown wild vs farmed there's regulations and those change depending on how it's cut prossed.. what I did learn is there's really no regulations until it's cut .. why Hooterville honey will only be selling whole frame comb honey uncut unprossed selling it right on frames .. your aloud one harvest cut under Michigan law .. call it a freebie so I could cut it from the frames legally without getting buried in regs .. Arabs only buy uncut unprossed it's medical for them and part of their culture.. I could go on and on about that.. fact is whole frame comb honey has 4x the value of prossed honey.. I'll have next to the sweet corn at Krogers by the end of summer and hopefully get some commercial operations producing it for me. They could even use that mountain of honey they all seem to be sitting on by feeding it back turning into whole frame comb honey.. I have one large commercial operation dipping his toe into it . Hopefully get more operations producing it for me...I'll have around 350 of my own units producing comb honey but that won't even scratch the surface .. there's 8 million Arabs south of Detroit.. they really don't care what's in the honey az long as the bees put it there.. I can't even start to understand their culture and history with honey bees but prossed just doesn't taste right they tell even when it's the same exact honey
This is how the big companies and corporations bankrupt and buy out smaller people…bury you in regulation.
Hoping we can turn this around!
😒Just a little more Government, just a little more and more and more....🙄
More ways to dig into your business and make you pay more taxes ect…
I think they are taking food defense seriously because there might have been a food terrorist event they did not make public.
i cannot decide whether this is completely useless or makes some actual value to the end customer...
I guess it could prevent from some edge cases, though unlikely when you are doing trades within a single country..
one thing for sure, this is cumbersome and ... I dare to say it ... boring ;)
About as useful as the ones they make companies do that are always recalling the meats and produce 😂
If you are requesting your employees to sign documents you must have a lawyer present acting on their behalf to countersign or the signature is null and void, and is useless. An employee is not permitted to enter into a contract within a contract, the first being the agreement of employment, it all gets quite messy legally. Oh by the way have you given any thought of returning to wooden hives as the evidence of chemical intrusion of the byproducts of polymer degradation within honey have already been proven to effect the reproductive organs of test animals and human tests are currently being investigated. There is a serious issue with the intrusion of polymers within the human food chain.
Sounds like you know a few things. I think we're OK because it's not actually a contract but just a recognition that they have read the page and understand it to satisfy the inspector. And yes I agree that polymers and plastics are becoming a big problem on endless levels. We touch and absorb them in so many ways.
If John’s going to be a cleaning lady get him a skirt!😂 have fun
I'll forward your suggestion.