Honey Festival brings buzz to fairgrounds

The festivities, however, will begin at 5:30 p.m. today at Vernon District Public Library where Lucy Winn, the 2022 American Honey Queen, will visit the library with a topic of “Honeybees: Helpers for Land and Sea,” according to a press release from the American Honey Queen Program. Winn, 20, a sophomore at DeSales University in Pennsylvania, will also participate in the Michigan Honey Festival

“(Lucy) Winn’s presence will influence the festival in a very, very positive way,” said Mindy Brisbane, president of Michigan Honey Festival. “Her whole purpose is to gear her information towards people who are not beekeepers. The main premise of the festival is to educate people on the importance of the bee and what it can do. I’m really excited to have her interacting with people.”

Winn, who currently resides in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and comes from a family that keeps beehives in their backyard, will speak to attendees about the importance of honeybees. Per the press release, she’ll teach about the dedication of beekeepers and how this drives pollination, how honeybees provide value economically and environmentally and about the diversity of honey.

The Michigan Honey Festival will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday’s festivities include keynote speeches from Winn and Malinda Barr, who will talk about beeswax and its uses; a team cornhole tournament beginning at 11 a.m. with a possible $400 grand prize; and several demonstrations, including a swarm demo where the queen bee is taken out of its hive and the other bees will come out and swarm around her; and an extraction demo, where the process of harvesting honey will be shown.

Brisbane said the signature event Saturday will be the Bee Beard, where Chris Persall of CAP Hobby Honey will have a queen bee on his chin and honeybees dumped onto his chest, eventually forming a “beard” when the bees move up his face to join the queen. Brisbane said attendees will be able to watch this inside a tent.

“This will help to show people how gentle bees can be and that they’re not always stinging and coming after you,” Brisbane said.

Sunday’s festivities will include two keynote speeches by Winn, face paintings and more demonstrations.

There will be a honey tasting event taking place over both Saturday and Sunday. Beekeepers can bring honey for attendees to sample by bringing their entry to the event by 9:45 a.m. on Saturday, according to Michigan Honey Festival’s website. Entries need to be in a jar with a minimum of 12 ounces. Attendees will have the chance to taste the entries and vote for their favorite after 10 a.m. Saturday.

Food vendors will also be on site.

For more information, visit michiganhoneyfestival.com.