ROCHESTER, N.Y. — It’s a difficult job but someone has to do it.
“I was timid at first," said John Miller, farm coordinator for Foodlink.
It’s his second year in the role and his second year harvesting the honey from these hives on Lexington Avenue.
“This one we’ll take, it’s what we call capped honey. There’s a wax covering over it so it’s all set for storage," said Miller.
The honey collected will get bottled and sold at Foodlink’s curbside markets.
“We extract the honey, filter it, bottle it up. It doesn’t take too long," said Miller about the process.
It’s another way Foodlink’s farm gives back to the community.
Each hive has about 30,000 bees inside and this year Miller knows how to handle them.
“When they have a low buzzing sound that means they’re okay, but when they get high pitched they're irritated," said Miller.
Once each hive is checked, Miller closes them up, letting them return to honey-making. Wrapping up another day, another difficult job is done.
The honey gathered will be for sale at Foodlink curbside markets in the coming weeks. This is the second batch of honey sold at markets. The first batch sold out almost immediately last year.