Thankfully I am recovering from the flu now and am gradually getting my energy back. My other health worry at this time of year is hayfever as I am particularly susceptible to tree pollen and to a lesser extent, grass pollen.

Having been hit so badly by the flu I was thinking at the weekend how I can protect myself against hayfever. One way is to eat locally produced honey. However, I live in Central London, not far from the Elephant and Castle on the south side of the Thames, just a few minutes walk from the Houses of Parliament. In this urban jungle, how the hell does one find locally produced honey?!

Thankfully one of my friends me yesterday that just down the road from me is a local gardening community project called Roots and Shoots. This site is also the home of The London Beekeepers Association and they have hives on site and sell honey in their shop. On my morning walk today I decided to investigate. Luckily the shop, which is staffed by volunteers and is only open three days per week, was open. Unluckily there had been a problem with the bees last year, thus reducing supplies, and the honey is already sold out. However, the lady checked under the counter for me and found one remaining pot. It was obviously destined to be mine!

A quick google of the term ‘london honey’ revealed that there are many hives on rooftops and in gardens around London and the number is growing. Apparently city dwelling bees are healthier than their country cousins because they ingest less pesticides. This article proves very interesting reading.

I’ve had a taste of my London honey and it is very light and sweet. It has much more flavour than the supermarket bought honey that I usually eat. Now all I have to do is find out where I can buy more.