Coloured Honey

Coloured Honey

Sacre bleu! Mystery of French bees making coloured honey is solved... after keepers find M&M waste plant nearby

Beekeepers around the town of Ribeauville in the region of Alsace have seen bees returning to their hives carrying unidentified colourful substances

Biogas plant has been processing waste from a Mars plant producing M&M's in bright red, blue, green, yellow and brown shells

Beekeepers in France were confused after their bees produced honey in mysterious shades of blue and green.

However, now the mystery has been solved, as it is now believed residue from containers of M&M's candy processed at a nearby biogas plant n northeastern France is the cause.

Since August, beekeepers around the town of Ribeauville in the region of Alsace have seen bees returning to their hives carrying unidentified colourful substances that have turned their honey unnatural shades.

Confusion: Since August, beekeepers around the town of Ribeauville in the region of Alsace have seen bees returning to their hives carrying unidentified colourful substances that have turned their honey unnatural shades

Determined to solve the mystery the beekeepers embarked on an investigation and discovered that a biogas plant 4 km (2.5 miles) away has been processing waste from a Mars plant producing M&M's, bite-sized candies in bright red, blue, green, yellow and brown shells.

Asked about the issue, Mars had no immediate comment. Hmmm would have thought they would have said “A Mars a day, equal work rest and play”

The unsellable honey is a new headache for around a dozen affected beekeepers already dealing with high bee mortality rates and dwindling honey supplies following a harsh winter, said Alain Frieh, president of the agriculturists' union.

  

Discovery: Beekeepers discovered that a biogas plant has been processing waste from a Mars plant producing M&M's, bite-sized candies in bright shells

Agrivalor, the company operating the biogas plant, said it had tried to address the problem after being notified of it by the beekeepers.

'We discovered the problem at the same time they did. We quickly put in place a procedure to stop it,' Philippe Meinrad, co-manager of Agrivalor, told Reuters.

He said the company had cleaned its containers and incoming waste would now be stored in a covered hall.

Mars operates a chocolate factory near Strasbourg, around 100 km (62 miles) away from the affected apiaries.

Bee numbers have been rapidly declining around the world in the last few years and the French government has banned a widely used pesticide, Cruiser OSR, which one study has linked to high mortality rates.

France is one of the largest producers of honey within the European Union, producing some 18,330 tonnes annually, according to a recent audit conducted for national farm agency FranceAgriMer.

Falling: Bee numbers have been rapidly declining around the world in the last few years

Ribeauville, situated on a scenic wine route southwest of Strasbourg, is best known for its vineyards.

However, living aside winemakers are about 2,400 beekeepers in Alsace who tend some 35,000 colonies and produce about 1,000 tonnes of honey per year, according to the region's chamber of agriculture.

As for the M&M's-infused honey, union head Frieh said it might taste like honey, but there the comparison stopped.

'For me, it's not honey, It's not sell-able', Just jealous that his was not coloured! It would sell because of its unusual colour.

This is just one of the many comments made by the public.

For those who keep asking, "Why don't they sell the colored honey," they can't b/c it is not honey, at least not pure honey, but has toxins in it. In order to get the colorful candies, M&Ms utilizes various chemicals to get the blues, reds, greens, etc. I don't know about you, but I don't want artificial chemicals in my honey. Another comment the article makes is that the bee population worldwide is diminishing. Bees are a major contributors to our ecosystem. With their recent high mortality rate and now the unnatural changes to their byproducts- honey- we could be looking at an ecological breakdown. We tend to forget that we need these insects, along with many other insects, to sustain life on the planet. The insects die, the plant life begins to die, the animals begin to die. . . you can follow what happens next.

Now I am sure this will raise its own comments, "like it is not pure honey as it has toxins in it" I would dispute this in that most honey these days has some sort of toxins in especially if the beekeeper treats for Varroa!

Only beekeepers like those at 3 Mile Bees can claim they have no added toxins as they do-not treat but use only natural remedies. 

 I also wonder if this person has ever eaten M&Ms, as for not wanting chemicals in their honey, most food off the shelves has been treated with some sort of Chemicals that is why there is so many forms of cancer etc.

As for the rest of their argument, I agree with the comments.