Honey ISSN: 1949-1492 Released March 18, 2022, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). United States Honey Production Down 14 Percent in 2021 United States honey production in 2021 totaled 126 million pounds, down 14 percent from 2020. There were 2.70 million colonies producing honey in 2021, down slightly from 2020. Yield per colony averaged 46.9 pounds, down 14 percent from the 54.5 pounds in 2020. Colonies which produced honey in more than one State were counted in each State where the honey was produced. Therefore, at the United States level yield per colony may be understated, but total production would not be impacted. Colonies were not included if honey was not harvested. Producer honey stocks were 23.5 million pounds on December 15, 2021, down 41 percent from a year earlier. Stocks held by producers exclude those held under the commodity loan program. Honey Prices Up 21 Percent in 2021 United States honey prices increased 21 percent during 2021 to $2.54 per pound, compared to $2.10 per pound in 2020. United States and State level prices reflect the portions of honey sold through cooperatives, private, and retail channels. Prices for each color class are derived by weighting the quantities sold for each marketing channel. Prices for the 2020 crop reflect honey sold in 2020 and 2021. Some 2020 crop honey was sold in 2021, which caused some revisions to the 2020 crop prices. Price Paid per Queen was 20 Dollars in 2021 The average prices paid in 2021 for honey bee queens, packages, and nucs were $20, $91, and $125 respectively. Pollination income for 2021 was $269 million, up 6 percent from 2020. Other income from honey bees in 2021 was $102 million, up 82 percent from 2020. These estimates along with expenditure and apiary worker information can be found on page 4 of this report. Colonies, Yield, Production, Stocks, Price, and Value - States and United States: 2020 [Colonies which produced honey in more than one State were counted in each State] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Honey : Yield : : : Average : Value State : producing : per : Production : Stocks : price per : of : colonies 1/ : colony : :December 15 2/ : pound 3/ :production 4/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 pounds ---- 1,000 pounds ---- dollars 1,000 dollars : Alabama ..............: 7 39 273 66 5.52 1,507 Arizona ..............: 25 36 900 360 2.38 2,142 Arkansas .............: 20 49 980 176 1.85 1,813 California ...........: 320 43 13,760 2,752 1.95 26,832 Colorado .............: 30 41 1,230 455 2.39 2,940 Florida ..............: 192 46 8,832 883 2.24 19,784 Georgia ..............: 101 34 3,434 412 2.52 8,654 Hawaii ...............: 15 105 1,575 79 1.70 2,678 Idaho ................: 107 35 3,745 637 1.76 6,591 Illinois .............: 10 52 520 156 5.65 2,938 : Indiana ..............: 9 55 495 149 3.91 1,935 Iowa .................: 35 58 2,030 1,259 2.54 5,156 Kansas ...............: 8 62 496 164 3.25 1,612 Kentucky .............: 7 33 231 58 5.76 1,331 Louisiana ............: 33 69 2,277 228 2.46 5,601 Maine ................: 10 30 300 78 3.36 1,008 Michigan .............: 95 47 4,465 1,384 2.95 13,172 Minnesota ............: 108 55 5,940 2,495 1.80 10,692 Mississippi ..........: 25 73 1,825 146 1.99 3,632 Missouri .............: 9 41 369 100 3.59 1,325 : Montana ..............: 110 81 8,910 3,208 1.61 14,345 Nebraska .............: 37 52 1,924 250 1.69 3,252 New Jersey ...........: 14 31 434 91 4.32 1,875 New York .............: 58 56 3,248 844 3.13 10,166 North Carolina .......: 12 38 456 123 5.50 2,508 North Dakota .........: 495 78 38,610 8,108 1.59 61,390 Ohio .................: 16 75 1,200 576 3.50 4,200 Oregon ...............: 95 29 2,755 1,102 2.40 6,612 Pennsylvania .........: 19 48 912 392 4.12 3,757 South Carolina .......: 16 46 736 66 3.44 2,532 : South Dakota .........: 245 61 14,945 8,668 1.77 26,453 Tennessee ............: 7 51 357 54 4.23 1,510 Texas ................: 157 57 8,949 1,253 2.00 17,898 Utah .................: 28 34 952 171 2.02 1,923 Vermont ..............: 6 47 282 96 3.94 1,111 Virginia .............: 5 40 200 54 6.03 1,206 Washington ...........: 98 37 3,626 798 2.51 9,101 West Virginia ........: 6 46 276 58 3.81 1,052 Wisconsin ............: 45 50 2,250 855 3.11 6,998 Wyoming ..............: 38 40 1,520 608 1.71 2,599 : Other States 5/ 6/ ...: 33 42 1,375 303 4.68 6,435 : United States 6/ 7/ ..: 2,706 54.5 147,594 39,715 2.10 309,947 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Honey producing colonies are the maximum number of colonies from which honey was harvested during the year. It is possible to harvest honey from colonies which did not survive the entire year. 2/ Stocks held by producers. 3/ Average price per pound based on expanded sales. 4/ Value of production is equal to production multiplied by average price per pound. 5/ Includes data for States not published in this table. 6/ Due to rounding, total colonies multiplied by total yield may not exactly equal production. 7/ United States value of production will not equal summation of States. Colonies, Yield, Production, Stocks, Price, and Value - States and United States: 2021 [Colonies which produced honey in more than one State were counted in each State] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Honey : Yield : : : Average : Value State : producing : per : Production : Stocks : price per : of : colonies 1/ : colony : :December 15 2/ : pound 3/ :production 4/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 pounds ---- 1,000 pounds ---- dollars 1,000 dollars : Alabama ..............: 8 40 320 112 5.99 1,917 Arizona ..............: 26 40 1,040 368 2.34 2,434 Arkansas .............: 17 50 850 255 2.07 1,760 California ...........: 290 33 9,570 1,627 2.40 22,968 Colorado .............: 29 40 1,160 232 2.78 3,225 Florida ..............: 193 44 8,492 849 2.42 20,551 Georgia ..............: 96 34 3,264 261 2.73 8,911 Hawaii ...............: 15 93 1,395 56 2.21 3,083 Idaho ................: 100 30 3,000 270 2.37 7,110 Illinois .............: 10 46 460 115 5.83 2,682 : Indiana ..............: 10 52 520 177 3.89 2,023 Iowa .................: 38 55 2,090 502 2.46 5,141 Kansas ...............: 7 42 294 144 2.74 806 Kentucky .............: 7 37 259 73 4.60 1,191 Louisiana ............: 37 58 2,146 205 2.50 5,365 Maine ................: 11 34 374 60 3.18 1,189 Michigan .............: 101 51 5,151 1,957 2.97 15,298 Minnesota ............: 125 57 7,125 285 2.32 16,530 Mississippi ..........: 25 71 1,775 71 2.77 4,917 Missouri .............: 8 35 280 92 3.99 1,117 : Montana ..............: 117 57 6,669 1,934 2.17 14,472 Nebraska .............: 39 47 1,833 550 2.17 3,978 New Jersey ...........: 15 35 525 158 3.27 1,717 New York .............: 57 53 3,021 665 4.15 12,537 North Carolina .......: 13 39 507 104 6.84 3,468 North Dakota .........: 515 55 28,325 2,266 2.19 62,032 Ohio .................: 16 64 1,024 389 3.70 3,789 Oregon ...............: 86 31 2,666 693 2.14 5,705 Pennsylvania .........: 20 42 840 336 3.40 2,856 South Carolina .......: 16 42 672 67 5.32 3,575 : South Dakota .........: 250 49 12,250 5,268 2.27 27,808 Tennessee ............: 8 56 448 81 5.00 2,240 Texas ................: 137 56 7,672 384 2.30 17,646 Utah .................: 31 33 1,023 92 2.18 2,230 Vermont ..............: 7 47 329 76 3.28 1,079 Virginia .............: 6 40 240 79 8.23 1,975 Washington ...........: 96 32 3,072 1,206 2.52 7,741 West Virginia ........: 6 43 258 136 4.80 1,238 Wisconsin ............: 42 47 1,974 750 2.81 5,547 Wyoming ..............: 38 58 2,204 242 2.07 4,562 : Other States 5/ 6/ ...: 28 48 1,349 340 4.90 6,610 : United States 6/ 7/ ..: 2,696 46.9 126,466 23,527 2.54 321,224 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Honey producing colonies are the maximum number of colonies from which honey was harvested during the year. It is possible to harvest honey from colonies which did not survive the entire year. 2/ Stocks held by producers. 3/ Average price per pound based on expanded sales. 4/ Value of production is equal to production multiplied by average price per pound. 5/ Includes data for States not published in this table. 6/ Due to rounding, total colonies multiplied by total yield may not exactly equal production. 7/ United States value of production will not equal summation of States. Honey Price by Color Class - United States: 2020 and 2021 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Co-op and private : Retail : All Color class :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2020 : 2021 : 2020 : 2021 : 2020 : 2021 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : dollars per pound : Water white, extra white, white ...: 1.73 2.22 4.18 5.35 1.81 2.30 : Extra light amber .................: 1.81 2.24 4.67 3.80 1.93 2.35 : Light amber, amber, dark amber ....: 2.00 2.42 5.51 5.51 2.53 2.85 : All other honey, area specialties .: 2.39 2.55 7.23 6.71 3.00 3.56 : All honey .........................: 1.84 2.30 5.23 5.04 2.10 2.54 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Income and Expenditures - United States: 2020 and 2021 [Represents income and expenditures on the total number of colonies, regardless of whether honey was harvested] ----------------------------------------------------------------- Item : 2020 : 2021 ----------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 dollars : Income : Pollination income ..............: 254,282 268,590 Other income 1/ .................: 55,773 101,688 : Expenditures : Varroa control and treatment ....: 11,706 11,565 Other colony issues 2/ ..........: 3,166 3,066 Feed 3/ .........................: 40,930 42,582 Foundation ......................: 6,567 7,064 Hives/woodenware ................: 11,153 9,863 ----------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Includes sales of queens, queen cells, beeswax, propolis, etc. 2/ Includes Nosema, tracheal mites, foulbrood, paralysis, Kashmir, cloudy wing, etc. 3/ Includes syrup, sugar water, honey, pollen patties, and other feeds. Queen, Package, and Nuc Prices Paid - United States: 2020 and 2021 [Represents prices paid on the total number of colonies, regardless of whether honey was harvested] ----------------------------------------------------------------- Item : 2020 : 2021 ----------------------------------------------------------------- : dollars : Queen ...........................: 18 20 Package .........................: 84 91 Nuc .............................: 106 125 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Apiary Workers - United States: 2020 and 2021 [Represents number of paid and unpaid workers that worked with colonies, regardless of whether honey was harvested] ----------------------------------------------------------------- Item : 2020 : 2021 ----------------------------------------------------------------- : workers : Apiary workers ..................: 24,000 24,000 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Statistical Methodology Survey Procedures: Data for honey producing operations are collected from a stratified sample of all known operations with at least 5 honey bee colonies that also meet USDA's definition of a farm. To qualify as a farm, an operation must be any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the year. NASS Regional Field Offices maintain a list of all known operations and use known sources of operations to update their lists. All sampled operations are mailed a questionnaire and given adequate time to respond by mail or electronic data reporting (EDR). Those that do not respond by mail or EDR are telephoned or possibly enumerated in person. Prices are collected by color class and marketing channel from operations with five or more colonies. Estimation Procedures: Sound statistical methodology is employed to derive the estimates from reported data. All data are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own past operating profile and to trends from similar operations. Data for missing operations were estimated based on similar operations or historical data. State offices prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and historic trends. Prices for each color class are derived by weighting the quantities sold for each marketing channel. Individual State estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness. Revision Policy: The previous year's estimates are subject to revision when current year's estimates are made. Revisions are the result of late reports or corrected data. Price revisions can be the result of additional sales reported the following year. Estimates will also be reviewed after data from the 5-year Census of Agriculture are available. No revisions will be made after that date. Reliability: Since all operations are not included in the sample, survey estimates are subject to sampling variability. Survey results are also subject to non-sampling errors such as omissions, duplication, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing the data. While these errors cannot be measured directly, they are minimized through strict quality controls in the data collection process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. To assist in evaluating the reliability of the estimates in this report, the "Root Mean Square Error" is shown for selected items in the following table. The "Root Mean Square Error" is a statistical measure based on past performance and is computed using the differences between first and final estimates. The "Root Mean Square Error" for honey producing colonies over the past 10 years is 1.1 percent. This means that chances are 1 out of 3 that the final estimate will not be above or below the current estimate of 2.70 million colonies by more than 1.1 percent. Chances are 9 out of 10 that the difference will not exceed 2.0 percent. Reliability of Honey Estimates [Based on data for the previous ten years] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Root mean : 90 percent : Difference between first and latest estimate : square error : confidence : : : : : : : level :------------------------------------------------------------- Item : : : : : : Years : : : : : :------------------------------- : : : Average :Smallest : Largest : Below latest : Above latest -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : percent percent --------- 1,000 -------- ----- number ---- : Honey producing colonies .....: 1.1 2.0 13 - 85 6 1 : Honey production .............: 1.2 2.1 846 - 4,796 6 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Represents zero. Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to nass@usda.gov Travis Averill, Chief, Livestock Branch ..................................... (202) 692-0069 Jean Porter, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section ................ (202) 690-3223 Holly Brenize - Poultry Slaughter......................................... (202) 720-0585 Alissa Cowell-Mytar - Cold Storage, Capacity of Refrigerated Warehouses .. (202) 720-4751 Liana Cuffman - Catfish and Trout, Mink, Census of Aquaculture ........... (202) 720-8784 Fatema Haque - Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised ........................... (202) 720-3244 Derron Martin - Chicken Hatchery, Egg Products............................ (202) 690-3237 Seth Riggins - Honey, Honey Bee Colonies ................................. (202) 690-4870 Autumn Stone - Layers, Eggs .............................................. (202) 690-3676 Takiyah Walker - Broiler Hatchery......................................... (202) 720-6147 Access to NASS Reports For your convenience, you may access NASS reports and products the following ways: All reports are available electronically, at no cost, on the NASS web site: www.nass.usda.gov Both national and state specific reports are available via a free e- mail subscription. To set-up this free subscription, visit www.nass.usda.gov and click on "National" or "State" in upper right corner above "search" box to create an account and select the reports you would like to receive. Cornell's Mann Library has launched a new website housing NASS's and other agency's archived reports. The new website, https://usda.library.cornell.edu. All email subscriptions containing reports will be sent from the new website, https://usda.library.cornell.edu. 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