Continuing from where we left...
So in 2006, we thought we would like to manufacture our own honey and learn more about this wonderful product.
We as a family knew that Honey is good for us, but little did we know HOW GOOD IT IS!! That's when we started to research about it and now we know that from Common cold and cough to Arthritis, from Wounds to Cancer; Natural Honey is where your search ends. We started with only one honey type- Multi-flora/ Forest Honey from Himachal Pradesh. We were like the most of us, who think that Honey is Honey, how different could one be from the other, what could differentiate them. Soon, we learnt that there are over 300 types of Honeys in the world!!! Honey has varying flavours- from light amber to jet black; the thumb rule is that light coloured honey has a appealing taste which is on the sweeter end while the darker ones have a more robust, stronger taste.
Next, we moved to Uttaranchal in search of other Honey types apart from the Forest Honey we already had procured. Also, it was too cold for the bees to stay up in the hills in the winters. So, more as co-incidence rather than intent, we stumbled upon Litchi Honey in Uttaranchal. This honey had a higher glucose content and would crystallize; especially in winters. Another myth i would to clarify for all of you- Honey DOES CRYSTALLIZE. But, more importantly-
Q. Why does Honey crystallize? Well, the Glucose content of the Honey decides whether Honey will crystallize or not, and how much if so. The higher the glucose content, the more the crystallization. We have discovered a Cotton Grain Honey which is completely crystallized- even in Indian summers!
Q. How does Glucose come into Honey in the first place?
The glucose content is dependent on the nature of the flowers and the soil where the Honey is sourced from. This may also decide the colour of the honey to an extent.
Q. I have a bottle of Honey and something sugary has settled at the bottom, i thought this was good quality Honey?
Some types of Honey do crystallize while others do not. This is dependent on the glucose content of the Honey. The glucose is from the source of the flowers. The test for natural honey is to either leave the bottle under the sun and allow the Honey to melt. The sugar won't. Also, you could take a spoonful of the honey and let it settle on your tongue, Honey will melt and disappear in your mouth leaving a wonderful taste, while for sugar/ jaggery- you will have to bite into it.
I thought these questions are like FAQ's and needed to be answered. I will think of more and share with you all. Hope this was helpful meanwhile.
Another quote from my personal of quotes: "No question is stupid or dumb, not asking one is the stupidest thing to do." -Preet Singh
Well, in search of these questions is where our quest for Natural Honey began; this is an insight from a keyhole of what we have learnt so far. I will keep sharing my knowledge and request you to do the same!
Hope this was helpful.
This is the story of how it all began..where we are now and where we want to go in our pursuit of not only 'Pure' , but NATURAL honey from the house of Societe Naturelle.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
How it all began...
Hi everyone, this is the story of us....where we come from, where we were, where we are today and lastly; where we would like to reach.
Life is a process of continuous learning...a quote composed by none other than myself goes "the more i see; the more i realise how stupid i am". Allow me to elaborate on this. A child who may be 5 years old, who explores his surroundings, asks questions and tries to analyse the answers he gets is wiser than a 70 year old man, who has never stepped out of his room in the house. Being confined to that room, the old man knows each of the articles present in it and their exact location; but for him that is the world he knows of. If you asked him to move beyond the room, he is out of his 'comfort zone' immediately. No single person can know everything. The world is too diverse, there is too much going on and maybe 1000 years won't be sufficient to understand it, however, the hunger to learn and find new ways is what is revolution; which is the history we have created and continue to pen down as our actions will influence the outcome of our times; which will be history for generations to come.
A person who states "i know it all" might be the biggest fool you ever come across. It might offend some, humour others and set a few of you thinking at what is this guy talking about. Well, i would like more of the few to join and take a minute or two to think the way i did.
Allow me to share some of my personal experience(s) and realisation, from where i formulated the quote "the more i see; the more i realise how stupid i am". In May 2008 i reached the city of London, my first international trip (apart from Nepal if you consider that abroad). This was a true eye-opener of sorts. Living in India, i thought i knew so much about the world and everything around it. Suddenly, i was part of this setup which worked very differently to the one i was accustomed to- i was "out of comfort zone". Even how they greeted was different and confusing!! In my first week at work, most colleagues i met, asked me one question to begin with- 'you alright?'. I had to eventually ask someone what it meant, did i look unwell or sick? No, "you alright" meant 'how are you' !! That's when the realisation started to kick in. An open mind , willing to accept and learn and take things in its stride will take me much further; not only me, but each one of us, and also make life much easier.
I do not wish to dig down further into this topic, but would like to come to what this is all about and Societe Naturelle and our Honey. What makes us different? Why do we want to be different? Where did we conceive this idea? and ofcourse How it all began....
I have been brought up to believe that do not believe everything as it is, try and look behind those curtains as how someting happens. In case you need to do it yourself, you will succeed. As a child i hated this exercise because this involved concentrating and focussing on something, whereas i could jump around and create havoc in the apartments i still live in.
When i was still a baby, my family posessed a piece of land where we used to grow mushrooms and needless to say, we did not spray any chemicals, external elements on the crop and it tasted wonderful! So the drive to go natural and organic has been always there, only difference being it was self-sustaining and not medium or large scale.
In 2006, my uncle and i started to learn about honey and its benefits and not to mention the dark side of Pure Honey. We realised that honey in itself has so many health benefits and the Honey in the market was not exactly Honey. This prompted us to dig deep (will write a seperate article on this) and the relevations were stark and obtrusive to an extent; that is when we decided that we are going in to get our hands dirty and manufacture, consume and sell our own honey and let others benefit from this gift of nature. The holy Quran quotes:
Please share your views and comments on this. I will try and update this blog on a weekly basis and promise to share each of my experiences, good or bad- no prejudice.
Thanks,
Preet Singh
co-founder
Societe Naturelle
Life is a process of continuous learning...a quote composed by none other than myself goes "the more i see; the more i realise how stupid i am". Allow me to elaborate on this. A child who may be 5 years old, who explores his surroundings, asks questions and tries to analyse the answers he gets is wiser than a 70 year old man, who has never stepped out of his room in the house. Being confined to that room, the old man knows each of the articles present in it and their exact location; but for him that is the world he knows of. If you asked him to move beyond the room, he is out of his 'comfort zone' immediately. No single person can know everything. The world is too diverse, there is too much going on and maybe 1000 years won't be sufficient to understand it, however, the hunger to learn and find new ways is what is revolution; which is the history we have created and continue to pen down as our actions will influence the outcome of our times; which will be history for generations to come.
A person who states "i know it all" might be the biggest fool you ever come across. It might offend some, humour others and set a few of you thinking at what is this guy talking about. Well, i would like more of the few to join and take a minute or two to think the way i did.
Allow me to share some of my personal experience(s) and realisation, from where i formulated the quote "the more i see; the more i realise how stupid i am". In May 2008 i reached the city of London, my first international trip (apart from Nepal if you consider that abroad). This was a true eye-opener of sorts. Living in India, i thought i knew so much about the world and everything around it. Suddenly, i was part of this setup which worked very differently to the one i was accustomed to- i was "out of comfort zone". Even how they greeted was different and confusing!! In my first week at work, most colleagues i met, asked me one question to begin with- 'you alright?'. I had to eventually ask someone what it meant, did i look unwell or sick? No, "you alright" meant 'how are you' !! That's when the realisation started to kick in. An open mind , willing to accept and learn and take things in its stride will take me much further; not only me, but each one of us, and also make life much easier.
I do not wish to dig down further into this topic, but would like to come to what this is all about and Societe Naturelle and our Honey. What makes us different? Why do we want to be different? Where did we conceive this idea? and ofcourse How it all began....
I have been brought up to believe that do not believe everything as it is, try and look behind those curtains as how someting happens. In case you need to do it yourself, you will succeed. As a child i hated this exercise because this involved concentrating and focussing on something, whereas i could jump around and create havoc in the apartments i still live in.
When i was still a baby, my family posessed a piece of land where we used to grow mushrooms and needless to say, we did not spray any chemicals, external elements on the crop and it tasted wonderful! So the drive to go natural and organic has been always there, only difference being it was self-sustaining and not medium or large scale.
In 2006, my uncle and i started to learn about honey and its benefits and not to mention the dark side of Pure Honey. We realised that honey in itself has so many health benefits and the Honey in the market was not exactly Honey. This prompted us to dig deep (will write a seperate article on this) and the relevations were stark and obtrusive to an extent; that is when we decided that we are going in to get our hands dirty and manufacture, consume and sell our own honey and let others benefit from this gift of nature. The holy Quran quotes:
Please share your views and comments on this. I will try and update this blog on a weekly basis and promise to share each of my experiences, good or bad- no prejudice.
Thanks,
Preet Singh
co-founder
Societe Naturelle
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