chicago fave: chicago honey co-op

Yep – you read that right. I’m talking about a bee farm on the west side of Chicago with nothing but urban landscape for miles and miles. It's The Chicago Honey Co-op, home to over 100 hives.

The beekeepers, dedicated to practicing sustainable agriculture, started the farm a few years ago and have been churning out chemical-free honey ever since. Not only do they have an awareness of their impact on the environment in the big picture, they’ve also focused on their impact much closer to home and are providing job opportunities to the under-employed in the area. I read a big article about the Co-op earlier this year in the Chicago Tribune and was so blown over by how they’ve embraced the community by bringing jobs to those who in many others’ eyes would be seen as undesirable.

In addition to honey, which tastes amazingly good, by the way, they also make pure beeswax candles and soaps, scrubs and balms. During the summer, they sell their wares at Chicago farmer’s markets, but for those not in the area – and all of us locals who are getting ready to face another winter – their products are available online too.