Pine honey

Pine honey is a type of honeydew honey. It is produced by honey bees that collect honeydew (sugary secretions) from a scale insect species, Marchalina hellenica, which lives on the sap of certain pine trees. When the scale insects feed, they excrete waste in the form of honeydew. Depending on local honey production laws, the product is sometimes not allowed to be classified as honey.

The physical characteristics of pine honey are controlled by the higher resin and lower water content of the Marchalina Hellinika honeydew from which it is made. Color is always darker than medium honey but typically lighter than buckwheat honey; density and viscosity are both higher than medium honey; smell and taste are reminiscent of pine sap. Because of its high density, some consumers say that pine honey is superior in its ability to satisfy the appetite.