Is there a such thing as...

[VolunteerK9]

Biohazard honey? Sounds stupid I know. But here goes. Im doing a trapout in town and went and checked on them today. Everything looks great, I found my freshly hatched queen from the frame of eggs I placed in there, small cell foundation was nearly all drawn and pollen stores. They also have about three frames of uncapped nectar stored. Now I realize that I have no clue where my bees get their nectar from here at home but these trapout bees are dead center of the 'Hood' . Ive seen bees working the area dumpsters which are chock full of empty coke cans (everything is called a coke here in the south) beer cans, rotgut liquor bottles etc. Said empty cans are consumed by my frequent 'customers' and they have everything from TB, all strains of hepatitis, HIV etc. Another one of my stupid questions but can such strains of viruses and/or diseases be transmitted from the cans and end result wind up in honey? Ive never heard of anyone contracting any of these this way, but some else asked me this question and I quite honestly didnt have an answer.

[hardwood]

I'd be more worried about them "gangsta" bees wantin' to pop a cap :-D

You might get some funny honey from the soda syrups, but for the most part the honey will be clean.

Scott

[VolunteerK9]

Yeah, Ive already made a 'no bandana rule' and a 'no graffiti' rule for them. Dont want my hive to get tagged or have little drive-by bullet holes in it.

I made em take all their 40 oz beer bottles and throw them off the landing board  :-D

[caticind]

I can't see the bees passing along pathogens in their honey.  They might get some soda remnants, which might contain a little spit from the drinkers, which almost certainly does not contain any viable pathogens (HIV and hepatitis at least CANNOT be passed through saliva at all).  The bees are immune, being so different from us mammals as not to have livers or lungs to infect.  And the honey, once processed, is an inhospitable environment to human pathogens and would kill just about anything left.

If the area around the trapout is that unhealthy, you are more likely to inhale TB bacillus or heavy metal particulates standing near the trapout than you are to get something from the honey.  Don't worry about it, unless you are obsessive about not getting HFCS in your honey.

[The Bix]

Along these same lines...I live in a semi-arid region where precipitation is quite precious.  I often wonder about planting bee friendly plants in the leach field for my septic system.  Would this be problematic for the honey?  The amount of nectar that they would gather from the plants is miniscule, but other than that would I have anything to be concerned about?  Thanks!

[VolunteerK9]

I knew I had never heard of it before, but I didnt want to be the first one either. Thanks for the info

[iddee]

Bix, if you are on a well, where do you think your leech field water goes to? It's recycled through the ground. What you are asking is no more likely to happen then you getting something from the bat manure your purchased fertilizer is made from when you grow veggies.

[sterling]

When I was a teenager and lived on a farm we had outside toliets and honey bees would almost always be in there in the summer. Course most of them bad things people have today were unheard of back then. ;)
There are several people here in the Nashville area who keep bees downtown and I have wondered about the pollution from cars and trucks make the honey taste like diesel fuel. :roll:

[The Bix]

Iddee,

I am on a well, but there are three aquifers sitting atop the one I tap.  I go about 1,100' down.  So the effluent from the leach field isn't percolating into my well water.  But, I understand your point...nothing to worry about.  Thanks.

--John

PS Sorry about all the dumb questions from us yankee city folks.

[VolunteerK9]

But really when you stop and think about it, it wasnt but a month or so ago where beekeepers had supers full of maraschino cherry syrup.  :-X

[AllenF]

Something to remember.   The honey you are eating is vomit to start with.

[forrestcav]

hey k9, KNoxville or Chattanooga? Isn't honey antimicobial? That would kill pathogens I would think.

[VolunteerK9]

hey k9, KNoxville or Chattanooga? Isn't honey antimicobial? That would kill pathogens I would think.

In the middle..Cleveland...

Yeah honey and propolis are both antimicrobial/antibacterial. Someone asked me the question and I really didnt know the right answer.

I know honey is bee puke to start with, just didnt want it to last like St. Ides Malt Liquor  :mrgreen:

[forrestcav]

gotcha. i'm the other way across monteagle off I-24
Since I heardhoney for wound tratment and MRSA, I would think it would be "safe"