18 Jan Honey from Ibiza, the nectar of the forest

Since ancient times, ibizans have collected the honey that the bees produce with the pollen they collect from the flowers of the forest and the field. Formerly, this sweet nectar was an essential food for families, as it complemented the diet and offered a remarkable ingredient for the preparation of desserts or to enjoy it simply with a piece of cheese.

On the island there is already a good number of hives catalogued and protected by their ethnographic value. The oldest documented dates back to the 15th and 17th centuries. Bees, in addition to being an essential element for the pollination of plants, provide an aliment of great energy value, which in the past was even used to treat different diseases, along with other natural components.

In the past, farmers built bee hives in the woods emptying logs and branches, and moved the swarms inside pumpkins. In the cupboard of the farm houses it was common to find a dish with pieces of honeycomb full of this sweet nectar, whose flavors oscillated depending on the seasons and the flora that exists in each area of the island.

Currently there are more than a hundred producers integrated in Ibiza’s Beekeepers Association, which manage more than two thousand bee hives. Thanks to this work, they sell an exquisite honey, with a very particular flavor, under the guarantee mark “Mel Certificada d’Eivissa”.