The health benefits of buckwheat honey are many and well known. However if you want buckwheat honey for its health benefits, it must be in the same condition as it was in the hive which means it has to be raw buckwheat honey. Heating buckwheat honey (pasteurization) destroys the all of the pollen, live enzymes, propolis, vitamins, amino acids, antioxidants, minerals, and aromatics.
The reason some buckwheat honey is heated is that the majority of Americans prefer the convenience of being able to spoon, pour or squeeze honey from a bottle onto their cereal or into their tea.
In addition, commercial honey is clearer, easier to measure or spread than raw honey and many people think that honey that has crystallized is spoiled so they discard it. Honey that has been heated and filtered will not crystallize as fast as raw honey. Therefore we also offer regular buckwheat honey for those who prefer it.
Buckwheat honey has a deep, dark brown color, pungent, strong molasses like earthy flavor and is high in mineral content and antioxidant compounds. Recent studies have shown buckwheat honey to be more effective than over-the-counter cough syrup for treating a cough.
Buckwheat is neither a grass nor wheat, but is a fruit related to rhubarb and is one of the first crops cultivated in the United States. Dutch colonists brought buckwheat to North America where they planted it along the Hudson River. Buckwheat was sometimes called beechwheat, because its seeds look like small beech nuts. Buckwheat seeds are also used or making gluten free flour.
Buckwheat was an important crop in the U.S. until the demand declined in the 1960's. Today, it is primarily grown in Northern states such as New York, which is where our buckwheat apiaries are located. Buckwheat blossoms are an excellent source of nectar and blooming can continue well into the autumn.
Buckwheat hulls are used as filling for pillows and zafu. The hulls are durable and do not conduct or reflect heat as much as synthetic fills and they are an excellent substitute to feathers for people with allergies. However, buckwheat hull pillows made with uncleaned and unprocessed hulls contain high levels of allergens that may trigger an asthma attack in those who are at risk.