From hobby to honey of a deal

“My wife Vicki and I moved back to Peace River after finishing university,” Bob Ballard says. “I started with 25 bee colonies as a hobby, but after four years I took the plunge and went full time into the honey business with 100 colonies.”

That was over 20 years ago. Today Ballard Apiaries has 2,000 colonies and supplies honey to customers from as far away as San Francisco.

Bob says when it comes to honey, it's all about location, location, location. And they couldn't have picked a better place than the Peace River region of northern Alberta.

“The further north you go, the lighter and whiter the honey gets,” Bob says. “Combined with the natural abundance of clover and alfalfa in the area and our long days, our bees produce a high grade honey that can't be found anywhere else.”

Ballard Apiaries also offers beeswax candles and something new, honey syrup, which Bob hopes will take off. “We have a pretty loyal customer base. A lot of people say they didn't think they liked honey until they tried ours.”

The proof is in the honey. Check it out at www.ballardhoney.com.