You may be no stranger to honey, but are you familiar with honeycomb wax? The striking symmetry and smooth golden color of honeycomb make it a true wonder of nature, and the wax might be the most intriguing part. When you think of wax, you probably think of candles or maybe even lip balm, but despite common misconceptions, honeycomb wax is edible. Check out our helpful guide to learn all about honeycomb wax—and what you can do with it.
What Is Honeycomb Wax?
Honeycomb is the hexagon-shaped structure of waxy cells built by honeybees to create their beehives. The bees use honeycomb as a place to live and store their honey, pollen, royal jelly, and larvae. Honeybees use quite a bit of energy to create honeycomb wax—about eight ounces of honey is required to build just one ounce of wax. The hexagonal shape of honeycomb helps them efficiently store the most amount of honey with the least amount of wax. When honey is harvested, the honeycomb is removed from the hive, and the gooey substance is extracted from the cells, leaving the honeycomb structure intact. What’s left is the honeycomb wax which consists of a sheet of the waxy hexagonal pattern.
Is Honeycomb Wax Edible?
Is honeycomb wax edible? Yes! Honeycomb wax is edible and perfectly safe to eat. The chewy, textural substance can be eaten on its own, used as a natural sweetener alternative, or added to a variety of foods and beverages.
What to Do with Honeycomb Wax
You can use honeycomb wax in place of honey or any other sweetener, but it is much more versatile than that. Honeycomb wax is a delicious solid food that can be added to any hot beverage. You should be aware that when placing honeycomb in a beverage, the wax will most likely float to the top. This is very normal and something that shouldn’t turn you away from using honeycomb as a natural sweetener. In addition, honeycomb can be eaten on its own—the smooth substance just melts in your mouth! When you eat raw honeycomb wax, you can chew it almost like gum and spit it out a few minutes later. When paired with food, the honeycomb is barely noticeable. Yet, in general, the sweet, chewy texture is loved by both kids and adults.
What else can you do with honeycomb wax? In addition to eating honeycomb wax, it can be used to make several different beauty products and has a variety of household uses. Honeycomb wax can be used to make candles, lotion, lip balm, soap, healing ointment, salve, deodorant, shoe polish, furniture polish, surfboard wax, sealing wax, grafting wax, mustache wax, baking grease, and cork grease.
Health Benefits of Honeycomb Wax
Honeycomb wax is much more than just a beautiful and delicious food. Eating it also offers several health benefits. Honeycomb wax contains several vital minerals and vitamins such as calcium, iron, magnesium, sodium chloride, and potassium. It is high in protein and can assist in helping you sustain a healthy gut, liver, and immune system. Honeycomb wax also works as a natural antibiotic and can help to lower cholesterol. Some people even eat honeycomb wax to combat seasonal allergies.
Single-Serve Honeycomb from Pass the Honey
Golden honeycomb wax is not only beautiful, but it is also tasty to eat and nutritious. You can add it to virtually any food and eat it with almost any diet (including Paleo!). Honeycomb wax can be eaten any time of the day with sweet or savory dishes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even on its own for a sweet snack. Honeycomb wax is a completely natural substance that has something to offer anyone looking to add some wholesome flavor and texture to their food.
The unprocessed single-serve honeycomb from Pass the Honey is raw and responsibly sourced. Our products are gluten free, non-GMO, and entirely sustainable. We don’t use any artificial colors, sweeteners, preservatives, or other additives. Pass the Honey honeycomb is perfect for snacking while on the go or as a natural sweetener alternative to sugar or corn syrup. Try single-serve honeycomb yourself to see what all the hype is about, and follow us on Instagram and Facebook for product updates and more about the many uses of honeycomb.