The best honey in Italy is Sicilian: it's not just a boast! This was decreed in 2017 by a jury of expert tasters in Montalcino, during the Honey Week .
It was not an easy competition: Sicilian honey was the best among the 85 competitors. This, despite the difficulties encountered by the beekeeping sector that year, which brought Italian beekeepers to their knees and also drastically impacted the production of Sicilian honey in 2017.
On the island, the production of the product is in fact an activity linked to a thousand-year-old tradition, with beekeeping producing some of the finest honey in the world. But let's find out more about the virtues and characteristics of Sicilian artisanal honey .
The properties of Sicilian PDO honey: better than an antibiotic!
Honey is said to be a better antibiotic than over-the-counter medications such as cough syrups and analgesics to relieve coughs, sore throats and respiratory diseases. This is stated by a study published in the British journal BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine .
The scholars who conducted the research at Oxford University demonstrated that honey could also represent a valid alternative to antibiotics in case of symptoms and disorders of the upper respiratory tract (cold, cough, pharyngitis, laryngitis) and should be recommended by doctors .
The research was based on the analysis of data from 14 previously published studies on upper respiratory tract infections, for a total of 1761 individuals, including children. Furthermore, many of the respiratory problems linked to seasonal ailments are often of viral origin, so antibiotics are useless and inappropriate.
If we add the characteristics and aromatic notes of Sicilian PDO honey to the properties of honey, we obtain a qualitatively superior product, with beneficial effects on health also thanks to the antioxidant content.
Honey production in Sicily: its importance for the territory
The production of honey in Sicily is of fundamental importance for the territory, particularly in the provinces of Catania and Syracuse. In particular, the municipality of Sortino, in the Syracuse area, and that of Zafferana Etnea, in the Catania area, founded the national association "The cities of honey" in 2002, which brings together the major honey producers in Italy. The honey production centers on the Nebrodi, in the area of Trapani and Palermo, are also very important.
The varieties of organic artisanal Sicilian honey
Sicilian honey is therefore a unique product: among its varieties it is impossible not to mention that of the Sicilian black bee, a native bee now almost in danger of extinction. Among the numerous varieties it is worth mentioning prominent local products such as orange blossom, carob , chestnut , thistle , sulla , thyme, citrus fruits (orange, lemon and mandarin).
Discover our fine 100% Sicilian honeys.
Hyblaean Honey
It is impossible not to dedicate a specific focus to the delicious and highly prized Ibleo honey, among the DOP honeys known and celebrated in the world. A honey whose history is lost over the centuries: many Greek and Roman writers describe it in their writings.This Sicilian honey derives in particular from thyme, extremely widespread in the barren and harsh landscape of the Iblei Mountains. Its production, in ancient times, was linked to the city of Ibla, which has now disappeared. The bond between the bees and the inhabitants of the city, subjects of King Iblon, is so strong that they were called "the bee people", after having dug their homes into the high rock face just like the bees in the hive.
The effigy of the honey bee was also engraved on ancient coins, as a symbol of Ibla, whose name also became synonymous with sweetness in poetry.
But what is our Ibla today? The largest production center of thyme honey - called "Satra" in dialect - still resides today in the Iblei mountains. Sicilian thyme honey is recognized as a PAT (Traditional Italian agri-food products) product of the Sicilian Region. Discover our Thyme Honey.
