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Research and references
Every guide links to its sources. This is the full list, grouped by what it covers, so you can read the originals.
Sources last checked 1 November 2026
Standards and testing
The benchmark for honey, and how its authenticity is checked.
- Standard for Honey (CXS 12-1981; adopted 1981, revised 1987 and 2001)
Codex Alimentarius (FAO/WHO), 2001 · Standard
- Honey processing (training presentation)
NIFTEM, India (PMFME programme) · Guidance
- Ultrafiltration of honey (conference poster)
Tentamus / QSI, 2006 · Study
- Honey authenticity: the NMR issue
UK Food Standards Agency · Institution
- FAQ: honey authenticity (NRZ-Authent)
Max Rubner-Institut, Germany, 2025 · Institution
Honey and bees in Nepal
Studies and reports on Nepali honey, beekeeping and the market.
- Physico-chemical characteristics of Apis dorsata, A. cerana and A. mellifera honey from Chitwan district, central Nepal
Apidologie 31:367–375, 2000 · Study
- Physicochemical analysis of Apis dorsata honey from Terai forests, Nepal
Pakistan Journal of Zoology 40(1):53–58, 2008 · Study
- Physicochemical, antioxidant, and antimicrobial study in Nepalese honey
BIBECHANA, 2025 · Study
- Economic performance and constraints of beekeeping (Apis mellifera L.) in Chitwan district, Nepal
Agriculture Development Journal 19, 2026 · Study
- Diversity study and development of bee floral calendar for Kavrepalanchowk district, Nepal
Journal of Agriculture and Natural Resources 7(1):106–126, 2024 · Study
- Honeybees of the genus Apis
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations · Review
- Chiuri honey (Mountain Partnership Products Initiative)
FAO Mountain Partnership · Institution
- Promoting beekeeping enterprises as additional income sources
ICIMOD · Institution
- Himalayan ceranaid: Apis cerana beekeeping in Nepal (field report)
Hosted by Bees for Babar; author and year not stated · Review
- Value chain analysis of honey sub-sector in Nepal
International Journal of Applied Sciences and Biotechnology, study year 2018 · Study
- Nepal’s honey hunters cling to traditions as bee numbers fall
Dialogue Earth, 2022 · News report
- Dharche’s honey-hunting tradition lives on
The Kathmandu Post, 2023 · News report
- Decline in honey sales worries farmers in central Nepal
The Kathmandu Post, 2023 · News report
- Winter brings bumper honey harvest in Nepal’s mountains, but no markets
The Kathmandu Post, 2024 · News report
- Chepang beekeepers taste success in honey business
The Kathmandu Post, 2025 · News report
- Rukum West beekeepers produce honey worth Rs 25m
Business 360°, 2024 · News report
Health and safety
Systematic reviews, health guidance and clinical reports.
- Honey for acute cough in children
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (Oduwole et al.), 2018 · Review
- Honey as a topical treatment for wounds
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (Jull et al.), 2015 · Review
- WHO calls on countries to reduce sugars intake among adults and children
World Health Organization, 2015 · Guidance
- Infant botulism and honey
University of Florida IFAS Extension · Guidance
- Mad honey (wild honey) poisoning: clinical case series from Nepal
PubMed Central · Study
- Clinical review of grayanotoxin/mad honey poisoning past and present
Clinical Toxicology, 2008 · Review
- Case files: mad honey
University of Utah Health, 2025 · Institution
Nutrition and uses
Where the nutrient figures and the uses of honey come from.
- Honey (SR Legacy, FDC ID 169640)
U.S. Department of Agriculture · Database
- Utilisation of honey in processed food products
IntechOpen, 2022 · Review
- Training manual, sub-module 6: hive products
Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization · Guidance
- Developments in the fermentation process and quality improvement strategies for mead production
Molecules 19(8), 2014 · Review
Beekeeping equipment
Where the facts on the farmer shop’s hives and small parts come from.
- Beginning honey beekeeping equipment and associated costs (AGEC-2002)
Oklahoma State University Extension (Bir, Talley and Jones), 2021 · Guidance
- Beekeeping equipment — tools (ENTO-095)
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension (Molly Keck), 2021 · Guidance
- Beekeeping: honey harvest methods, costs and breakeven calculations (AGEC-272)
Oklahoma State University Extension (Bir and Lucas), 2022 · Guidance
- Beekeeping Trainers’ Resource Book (in Nepali; covers hive types and equipment used in Nepal)
ICIMOD (A. N. Shukla), 2000 · Guidance
Research centres and journals
Places to follow honey bee science. We have not drawn on all of them directly.
- Center for Pollinator Research
Penn State University · Institution
- Honey Bee Lab
Oregon State University · Institution
- Honey Bee Research and Extension Laboratory
University of Florida IFAS · Institution
- Honey Bee Breeding, Genetics and Physiology Research Unit
USDA Agricultural Research Service · Institution
- Reference activities of the Sophia Antipolis laboratory
ANSES, France (EU Reference Laboratory for bee health) · Institution
- Bee Studies — aim and scope
Apiculture Research Institute, Ordu, Türkiye · Institution
- Insects — section Social Insects and Apiculture
MDPI · Institution
- World’s first AI smart hives network helps conserve declining global honey bee populations
TelecomTV, 2018 · News report
What we did not find
These are things we looked for in the sources we opened and did not find:
- Shelf prices for bottled honey brands. Marketplace listings load dynamically and change often.
- A reliable per-colony yield for wild giant honey bees.
- Composition data for chiuri honey and for Himalayan cliff honey.
- Any clinical evaluation of the folk uses reported for cliff honey.