Vegans and honey
Just for the lulz I decided to look up vegan positions on consuming honey...and now I'm kind of sorry that I did. First of all, most of the misinformation they have on beekeeping and the honey industry is loltastic. And kind of depressing, because I hate seeing misinformation so widely spread. Most of these people know nothing about bee biology or behavior, and yet they complain that the beekeepers are 'enslaving the bees' and stealing their honey! I do realize that vegans need to be consistent in their positions and care for ALL animals not just mamals, but really, if they took caring for insect welfare to the logical extreme, they would have nothing left to eat. Heck, they might as well just stop existing because they are probably stepping on or accidentally consuming an insect at this very moment.
Loltastic vegan arguments against honey.
1. The beekeeper FILLS THE HIVE WITH SMOKE when manipulating the bees to make them calm and complacent.
This one had me falling out of my chair. What does it even mean? They complain about bees dying when stinging, and yet they complain that the beekeeper uses smoke to keep the bees calm (so that fewer of them die from stinging)? An experienced beekeeper knows exactly how much smoke to use, and it's ususally just a few puffs if the bees are in a good mood.
2. The Queen bee's wings are clipped (I think the word they used was TORN OFF), and sometimes she is 'kept prisoner' in one section of the hive
Lol, we do that for marking and id-ing queens sometimes. And using a queen excluder just keeps the brood nest in one area and makes the honey harvest easier on the bees.
3. Bees ARE KEPT PRISONER AND NOT ALLOWED TO NATURALLY SWARM
Bees don't swarm when they are unhappy. They swarm as a way to make another colony. If a colony looks like it might swarm (or when it's getting big enough that it might swarm soon), it's usually split, and another colony is made - which is pretty much the same thing the bees would have done, but more controlled. If the bees were unhappy they would abscond, which is something completely different. There is no way to prevent absconding, except to keep the bees happy. (Maybe that's why vegans purposely don't understand the difference between swarming and absconding - because then they would have to admit that maybe the bees are well-taken care of.)
4. Bees have their honey STOLEN from them.
During times of heavy nectar flows, bees produce excess honey. Removing it makes it easier on the bees.(Since they have a must collect nectar and STORE IT mentality, and get annoyed when they start running out of room)
5. The queen is ruthlessly killed! Just like baby cows!
Lol. Sometimes the queen is replaced by the beekeeper to keep the colony healthy and happy (if the bees are agressive or disease prone, replacing the queen can fix that). The bees will sometimes kill the queen off too, if they are unhappy with her.
6. The bees are FORCED to live in artificial hives with evenly spaced frames that they don't like!
This one really made me laugh. They haven't seen much old, falling apart bee equipment (though I'm sure it would only start a rage! rant of 'the bees are beeing neglected!'). Bees pretty much do what they want. They aren't forced to do anything. Sometimes a swarm will move into empty bee equipment if they are looking for somewhere to nest. And the removable frames make it easier on the bees when they are being worked, because the comb doesn't get broken or torn.
7. The beekeeper sometimes STEPS ON AND CRUSHES THE BEES TO DEATH!
I accidentally do that sometimes. whoops :(
Bees are not like other livestock. They really aren't 'domesticated', they are kind of just contained and managed and propogated. It's almost a symbiotic relationship. Even big producers in the 'honey industry' do their best to keep the bees happy, because that's how they can get more honey. Sick/unhappy bees don't produce much honey. Very unhappy bees abscond and leave. The End.
I also don't understand after reading all these vegan arguments, how they can advocate use of sugar as 'cruelty-free'. DOES NOT COMPUTE. Do they have any idea how much land is cleared, and trees and plants killed to plant sugar cane? Or the plumes of smoke that blacken the sky as sugar cane fields are burned after harvest? Or the amount of insects that are killed in pest management? Honey is much more environmentally friendly than sugar, it can even bee used in conservation projects as a way for people to conserve an area of land in its natural state and still get something from it. Unlike most other crops.
*Random 'bee' typos left in, because I am silly like that.
Loltastic vegan arguments against honey.
1. The beekeeper FILLS THE HIVE WITH SMOKE when manipulating the bees to make them calm and complacent.
This one had me falling out of my chair. What does it even mean? They complain about bees dying when stinging, and yet they complain that the beekeeper uses smoke to keep the bees calm (so that fewer of them die from stinging)? An experienced beekeeper knows exactly how much smoke to use, and it's ususally just a few puffs if the bees are in a good mood.
2. The Queen bee's wings are clipped (I think the word they used was TORN OFF), and sometimes she is 'kept prisoner' in one section of the hive
Lol, we do that for marking and id-ing queens sometimes. And using a queen excluder just keeps the brood nest in one area and makes the honey harvest easier on the bees.
3. Bees ARE KEPT PRISONER AND NOT ALLOWED TO NATURALLY SWARM
Bees don't swarm when they are unhappy. They swarm as a way to make another colony. If a colony looks like it might swarm (or when it's getting big enough that it might swarm soon), it's usually split, and another colony is made - which is pretty much the same thing the bees would have done, but more controlled. If the bees were unhappy they would abscond, which is something completely different. There is no way to prevent absconding, except to keep the bees happy. (Maybe that's why vegans purposely don't understand the difference between swarming and absconding - because then they would have to admit that maybe the bees are well-taken care of.)
4. Bees have their honey STOLEN from them.
During times of heavy nectar flows, bees produce excess honey. Removing it makes it easier on the bees.(Since they have a must collect nectar and STORE IT mentality, and get annoyed when they start running out of room)
5. The queen is ruthlessly killed! Just like baby cows!
Lol. Sometimes the queen is replaced by the beekeeper to keep the colony healthy and happy (if the bees are agressive or disease prone, replacing the queen can fix that). The bees will sometimes kill the queen off too, if they are unhappy with her.
6. The bees are FORCED to live in artificial hives with evenly spaced frames that they don't like!
This one really made me laugh. They haven't seen much old, falling apart bee equipment (though I'm sure it would only start a rage! rant of 'the bees are beeing neglected!'). Bees pretty much do what they want. They aren't forced to do anything. Sometimes a swarm will move into empty bee equipment if they are looking for somewhere to nest. And the removable frames make it easier on the bees when they are being worked, because the comb doesn't get broken or torn.
7. The beekeeper sometimes STEPS ON AND CRUSHES THE BEES TO DEATH!
I accidentally do that sometimes. whoops :(
Bees are not like other livestock. They really aren't 'domesticated', they are kind of just contained and managed and propogated. It's almost a symbiotic relationship. Even big producers in the 'honey industry' do their best to keep the bees happy, because that's how they can get more honey. Sick/unhappy bees don't produce much honey. Very unhappy bees abscond and leave. The End.
I also don't understand after reading all these vegan arguments, how they can advocate use of sugar as 'cruelty-free'. DOES NOT COMPUTE. Do they have any idea how much land is cleared, and trees and plants killed to plant sugar cane? Or the plumes of smoke that blacken the sky as sugar cane fields are burned after harvest? Or the amount of insects that are killed in pest management? Honey is much more environmentally friendly than sugar, it can even bee used in conservation projects as a way for people to conserve an area of land in its natural state and still get something from it. Unlike most other crops.
*Random 'bee' typos left in, because I am silly like that.