National Honey Month is a September observance created in 1989 by the National Honey Board — not a presidential proclamation or an act of Congress, but a real federal-checkoff-funded industry board’s promotional calendar, timed to coincide with the end of the honey harvest season for many US beekeepers. Understanding where it actually comes from makes it more interesting than a generic “buy honey this month” trivia post, and the current USDA numbers on US honey production and consumption give it real substance.
Key Takeaways
- National Honey Month was established in 1989 by the National Honey Board, not by a presidential proclamation or congressional act — an important distinction from observances like World Bee Day, which is a formal UN resolution.
- The National Honey Board itself exists because of real federal legislation: the Honey Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Act of 1984 authorized a honey “checkoff” program, funded by a per-pound assessment on all domestic and imported honey, that began operating in 1987.
- September was chosen specifically because it marks the end of the honey collection season for many US beekeepers — the timing lines up with when a beekeeper’s year of work actually becomes jars on a shelf.
- Per USDA’s Economic Research Service, US per capita honey consumption hit a record 2.0 pounds in 2024 before easing slightly to about 1.9 pounds in 2025 — nearly double what it was in 1990.
- The same USDA data shows about 78% of the US honey supply in 2025 came from imports (mainly India, Argentina, Brazil, and Vietnam) — worth knowing if part of how you mark the month is deliberately buying domestic or local honey instead.
Table of Contents
- What National Honey Month Actually Is
- The Real Origin: A Federal Checkoff Program, Not a Proclamation
- Why September, Specifically
- The Honey Numbers Worth Knowing Right Now
- How It’s Actually Marked
- A Few Ways to Actually Participate
- Frequently Asked Questions
What National Honey Month Actually Is
National Honey Month is a US industry-promotional observance held every September, established by the National Honey Board (NHB) in 1989 to raise awareness of American beekeeping and honey as a natural food product. It’s genuinely useful to be precise about what kind of observance this is: unlike some national awareness months that trace back to a presidential proclamation or a specific act of Congress, National Honey Month originated as a promotional designation from the industry’s own federally-authorized marketing board — a distinction worth understanding rather than assuming every “national [x] month” has the same kind of official backing.
The Real Origin: A Federal Checkoff Program, Not a Proclamation
The National Honey Board didn’t appear from nowhere — it exists because of a specific piece of federal legislation. The Honey Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Act of 1984 (Public Law 98-590) authorized the creation of a honey “checkoff” program: a federally-sanctioned system, similar in structure to the well-known dairy and beef checkoff programs, where an industry funds its own collective research and promotion through a mandatory per-unit assessment. Honey producers and importers voted the program into existence, and the underlying marketing order took effect July 21, 1986; the 13-member National Honey Board began operating in early 1987, funded by an assessment of 1 cent per pound on all domestic and imported honey. Three years into the Board’s existence, in 1989, it designated September as National Honey Month — a promotional decision by the Board itself, not a separate act of government.
Why September, Specifically
The Board’s choice of September wasn’t arbitrary: it’s the month that marks the end of the honey collection season for many beekeeping operations across the US, meaning a beekeeper’s full season of forage, hive management, and nectar flow has typically just turned into extracted, bottled honey by the time the month begins. Timing a promotional push to land right after harvest — rather than, say, in the dead of winter — puts the observance right when fresh honey is genuinely most available.
The Honey Numbers Worth Knowing Right Now
Most “it’s National Honey Month” content repeats the same handful of generic facts every year without updating them. The actual current picture, per USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and Economic Research Service (ERS), looks like this:
- Production: US honey production in 2025 totaled about 116 million pounds, down 14% from 2024, produced by roughly 2.41 million honey-producing colonies (down 7% year-over-year).
- Consumption: US per capita honey consumption reached a record 2.0 pounds in 2024, then eased slightly to about 1.9 pounds in 2025 — still nearly double the roughly 1-pound-per-year level from 1990, a genuine long-term growth trend in American honey demand.
- Price: US honey prices rose about 27% during 2025, averaging $3.05 per pound compared to $2.41 per pound in 2024.
- Imports: Around 78% of the US honey supply in 2025 came from imported sources, led by India, Argentina, Brazil, and Vietnam — domestic production covers a minority of what Americans actually consume.
That import figure is worth sitting with for a moment: a month explicitly meant to promote American beekeeping exists in a market where imports now supply the clear majority of the honey Americans eat — a real tension in the numbers that most “fun facts” listicles skip entirely.
How It’s Actually Marked
In practice, National Honey Month is marked less through formal ceremony and more through consumer-facing promotion: honey tastings and recipe features from the National Honey Board and honey brands, beekeeping association open-hive events and educational workshops, restaurant and food-media honey-focused menus and content, and retailer promotions on honey products. Because the observance sits at the intersection of a real agricultural industry and consumer food culture, it tends to show up more in kitchens, farmers markets, and food media than in official government messaging.
A Few Ways to Actually Participate
- Buy from an identifiable domestic or local source rather than an anonymous import-blended jar, especially given how much of the US supply is now imported — see this site’s guide to finding and vetting real local honey.
- Actually taste the range of honey varieties available rather than defaulting to one generic jar — this site’s honey varieties comparison chart is a genuinely useful starting point.
- Try comb honey if you never have — September’s harvest timing makes it a realistic month to find fresh comb honey specifically; see comb honey vs. extracted honey for what to expect.
- Cook or bake with honey deliberately rather than as a 1:1 sugar swap — matching the right honey variety to the right use genuinely changes the result.
- Visit a local beekeeping association event if one is happening near you in September — many time open-hive days and harvest demonstrations to coincide with the observance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who actually created National Honey Month?
The National Honey Board, a federally-authorized industry marketing board funded by a per-pound checkoff assessment on honey, designated September as National Honey Month in 1989 — it wasn’t established by a presidential proclamation or an act of Congress.
Is National Honey Month an official US government holiday?
No. It’s an industry-promotional observance created by the National Honey Board itself. The Board exists because of real federal legislation (the Honey Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Act of 1984), but the September designation specifically was the Board’s own promotional decision, not a separate governmental proclamation.
Why is National Honey Month in September and not another month?
September marks the end of the honey collection season for many US beekeeping operations, meaning fresh, newly-extracted honey is genuinely most available right around when the observance begins.
How much honey do Americans actually eat?
Per USDA’s Economic Research Service, US per capita honey consumption hit a record 2.0 pounds in 2024, easing slightly to about 1.9 pounds in 2025 — nearly double the roughly 1-pound level from 1990.
Does the US produce most of the honey it consumes?
No — about 78% of the US honey supply in 2025 came from imports, primarily from India, Argentina, Brazil, and Vietnam, according to USDA data. Domestic production (about 116 million pounds in 2025) covers a minority of total US honey consumption.
What’s the best way to actually mark National Honey Month?
Buying from an identifiable local or domestic beekeeper, tasting different honey varietals instead of defaulting to one generic jar, and trying comb honey while it’s freshly in season are all genuinely more meaningful than just reading a list of honey facts.
