Kansas Profile - RevHoney By Ron Wilson Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development Posted Aug. 14, 2013 @ 11:29 am Haddam — Milwaukee, Wis. is the site of the USA Triathlon 2013 Age Group National Championships. As one of the competitors makes his run, he pops open a tube to consume an all-natural honey snack as an energy boost. Where do you suppose that honey snack came from? Would you believe, in the middle of Kansas? Today we’ll learn about a Kansas company which is using natural honey as an energy food that is going coast to coast. Jerry and Debbie Brown are owners of RevHoney, Inc., the innovative business which produces these foods. Jerry’s grandfather, Vernon Adee, started beekeeping in north central Kansas in 1948. Vernon’s daughter Donna married Robert Brown and they started Brown Honey Farms in Kansas in 1963. By the 1980′s, Robert and their son Jerry had grown Brown Honey Farms into the largest beekeeping operation in Kansas. They sold honey commercially to packers who would bottle and sell it through large chain grocery stores. Jerry also served as executive director of the American Honey Producers Association. As Jerry moved into management, he was looking for a way to add value to the product. “There has to be a better way to market it,” he said. In 2006, the Browns partnered with Doctors to research the health benefits of honey compared to other sweeteners. “The results were even better than we expected,” Jerry said. “The Honey Revolution.” was written through WCE, a publishing company owned by Jerry Brown. The Browns decided to market their honey in an innovative way. Paraphrasing the name of the book, they titled their company RevHoney. “Our goal was to market healthy products using only natural ingredients and nature’s best raw honey,” Jerry said. His son Nate co-founded the company and did the initial development work. Their first product was a flavored honey snack in a resealable cylinder they call a U-tube (sounds like a video, only tastier). It is a healthy energy snack in cinnamon, blackberry, apple cinnamon, strawberry and peach flavors. Next the company moved into the energy drink market. RevHoney now offers a honey-based energy drink in two flavors, Berry Rain and Extreme Citrus. These also are 100 percent made from natural ingredients. In addition to online sales coast-to-coast, RevHoney products are now sold in more than 500 stores including Hy-Vee, Apple Market, Whole Foods, and convenience stores such as Dara’s, and more. In addition to the value-added products, customers are also asking for the raw honey itself. RevHoney products are also sold in doctor’s clinics, gyms, racetracks, schools, and health clubs. The company continues to innovate and develop new products, with help from K-State’s food science department. RevHoney offers bottled water and is working on a sports drink.
Posted on: Thu, 15 Aug 2013 17:11:36 +0000
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