I live in a suburban area near Boston, and I can get pure unadulterated honey anytime I want. I probably have a dozen places within several miles I can get it.
I think you are overstating it a bit. I can’t speak for what is sold in the stores, but there is no shortage of pure honey where I live.
“I think you are overstating it a bit. I can’t speak for what is sold in the stores, but there is no shortage of pure honey where I live.”
It is most likely that the stuff you find in the stores is not actually honey, but is rather honey cut with HFCS or imported honey or HFCS converted to honey.
I am not a professional beekeeper but have had bees since I was a kid in order to combat allergies, but honey does not help with allergies.
In the almost 40 years I have had bees, I have seen not just the rise of Varroa but the introduction of Varroa to North America. I have also seen a great increase in small hive beetles and the neonics have exasperated both the mite and beetle problems. Now, I have to monitor hives to make sure they do not become africanized.
Additionally, transporting colonies from geographic region to geographic region has caused the spread of Varroa.
Beekeeping is much more complicated now and unless you are pulling the frames out of your super and extracting the honey yourself, it is likely that you are not getting pure unadulterated honey.