Statistics Canada
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Annual honey survey
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Data sources
Prior to the 1999 crop year, Statistics Canada compiled data on Honey and other Apiary Product Farms through a combination of survey taking and administrative sources of data. Estimates published for the provinces of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba and Saskatchewan were based on a probability sample survey of beekeeping operations in those provinces. Provincial departments of agriculture in the provinces of Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia carried out their own surveys to independently estimate all honey variables published in this annual bulletin.
Beginning with the 1999 crop year, the provinces of Nova Scotia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan were added to the list of provinces for which data was compiled solely from provincially administered survey vehicles. While these surveys cover the same subject matter as the Statistics Canada survey, each province customizes its own questionnaire to request supplementary data on topics relevant to its apiculture industry. It is worth noting that no data has ever been collected or compiled for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador with respect to this industry.
In September of 2000, Statistics Canada conducted a census of beekeepers in the provinces of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. The survey frame in these provinces was drawn from a list compiled after the conclusion of the 2001 Census of Agriculture and augmented from a registration list provided by the respective agricultural authorities in each of those two provinces. The Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick Honey Survey is now conducted as a mail out/mail back survey. Honey surveys prior to September of 1999 were conducted through a computer assisted telephone interview process.
The goal of the Statistics Canada Honey Survey is to provide an estimate of the quantity and value of the domestic commercial production of honey.
Revisions
The estimates are preliminary when first published and subject to revision in the next year. There are relatively few revisions made to the estimates due to the availability of administrative data at the time estimates are initially published.
