Straining removes wax particles, bee parts and debris from extracted honey. It is the simplest step in processing and the most misunderstood.

Coarse straining is enough

The honey runs from the extractor through a strainer, usually double: a coarse one for wax lumps and a finer one for small particles.

That removes what does not belong and leaves the pollen in place.

Why not finer

Very fine filtration removes the pollen grains — and with them the trace of geographical origin.

In such honey the origin can no longer be demonstrated. For a producer competing on origin and traceability that is not an improvement but a loss.

Clarity comes from settling

What makes honey clear is not finer straining but resting. In a settling tank everything lighter than honey rises to the surface and is skimmed off.

Giving time does what a fine filter does, without removing the pollen.

Practical points

• Strain while the honey is warm; cold honey barely passes through
• Empty the strainer periodically; a clogged strainer overflows
• Set the strainer over the settling tank, not over an open bucket
• Do not heat to speed it up

Materials

Stainless steel or food-grade plastic. Galvanised metal and untreated steel are unsuitable; honey is acidic.

Cleaning

Strainers are where most remains and are most often forgotten. Warm water, dry completely, no detergent residue.

Residual honey goes mouldy and becomes a source of contamination next season.

The strained wax

What stays on the strainer is usable. It goes with the cappings wax — provided it did not come from old brood comb.