Last updated: August 21, 2026
The jars are the part of beekeeping that people picture long before they own a hive: rows of them on a table, a handwritten label, a piece of ribbon. Then the honey is actually in the bucket and the questions turn practical. What size, glass or plastic, which lid, and does a jar you give to a neighbor need a label at all.
Two of those are matters of taste and one is not. Once honey leaves your kitchen in exchange for money, it is a packaged food, and the label requirements are set by the FDA and by your state rather than by you. This covers both halves: what to put honey in, and what has to be on the outside of it.
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Quick Answer
What jars and labels do you need for your own honey?
- Glass looks better and does not scratch; plastic squeeze bottles and bears travel better and are what most people actually use at the table.
- Whatever the container, it has to be food safe, clean and completely dry before honey goes in.
- The FDA sets the core label elements for honey sold as a packaged food: the name, the net quantity of contents, and the name and address of whoever produced or packed it.
- Your state adds its own rules through cottage food law and its department of agriculture, and those vary a lot, so check yours before selling anything.
Bottom line: pick containers on how the honey will be used, and treat the label as a legal document rather than decoration once money changes hands.
Choosing a Container
Glass is the classic and it has real advantages: it does not scratch, it does not hold odors, it can be washed and reused, and honey looks better through it. The trade is weight, breakage and cost. Plastic containers are lighter, safer around children and easier to post, at the cost of scratching over time and looking less premium on a table.
Shape matters more than people expect. Wide mouth jars are far easier to fill and far easier to scrape out when the honey crystallizes, which it eventually will. Narrow necked bottles look elegant and are a nuisance at both ends of their life.
Sizes and Lids
Small containers are the ones that get given away and the ones that sell at a farm stand, because honey is dense and a large jar is a bigger commitment than it looks. Most backyard keepers end up with a mix: small jars for gifts, a medium size as the standard, and a few large ones for people who buy it every year.
For lids, metal lug lids seal well and suit glass jars; plastic lids are cheaper and lighter; flip top and squeeze caps suit bottles meant for the table. If you sell, look into tamper evident closures or seals, since some buyers and some venues expect them.
Crystallization Is Not a Fault
Honey crystallizes, some varieties within weeks. It has not spoiled, and gentle warming returns it to liquid. A wide mouth jar makes that a non issue, and a short line on your label explaining it saves a great many worried messages from people receiving honey for the first time.
Containers Compared
| Container | Strengths | Drawbacks | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glass jar, wide mouth | Easy to fill and empty, reusable | Heavy, breakable | Gifts, farm stand, everyday |
| Hex or specialty glass | Looks distinctive on a shelf | Costs more, narrower opening | Selling, presentation |
| Plastic squeeze bottle | Light, no drips, child friendly | Scratches, less premium | Table use, posting |
| Plastic bear | Instantly recognizable, cheap | Hard to empty when crystallized | Kids, casual gifts |
What Has to Be on a Honey Label
For honey sold as a packaged food, the FDA sets the core elements. The label must identify the product as honey, state the net quantity of contents, and give the name and place of business of the producer, packer or distributor. The FDA also specifies that the net quantity statement goes in the lower part of the front panel, in both customary and metric units.
If anything has been added, that is no longer plain honey and the added ingredient must be declared. Infused and flavored honeys therefore carry more labeling obligation than straight honey does, not less.
Nutrition Panels and Exemptions
Whether a nutrition facts panel is required depends on the size and nature of your operation, because the FDA provides exemptions for certain small businesses. Whether yours qualifies is a question for the FDA’s own guidance and your state, and it is worth resolving before you print several hundred labels.
Where Your State Takes Over
Beyond the federal basics, selling honey from home is governed by state cottage food law, and those laws differ substantially from one state to the next. Some require a specific disclaimer on the label in a set type size and contrast, some cap where and how you may sell, and some require registration or an inspection.
The people to ask are your state department of agriculture and your state apiarist, and your local beekeeping association will usually know the practical version because its members already sell honey under those rules. Do not rely on what a beekeeper in another state tells you, because the answer genuinely changes at the border.
Health Claims Are the Trap
The fastest way to turn a simple honey label into a regulatory problem is to put a health claim on it. Statements about allergies, coughs, wounds or immunity move a food into a different category entirely. Describe the honey, the floral source if you know it, and where it came from, and leave medicine out of it.
Labels That Do the Job Well
Beyond the required elements, the things buyers actually respond to are the location, the season and the floral source. Local honey sells because it is local, so the town or the county on the label does more work than any design flourish. A harvest date or a lot code also makes it easy to track a batch if a question ever comes up.
Keep the required information legible and unclustered. A beautiful label that hides the net weight in a script font over a photograph is a label you will end up reprinting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a label to give honey to friends? Gifts are not sales, and the packaged food rules apply to honey offered for sale. Even so, putting your name, the harvest year and a note about crystallization on a gift jar is good practice and costs nothing.
What does the FDA require on a honey label? The product identified as honey, the net quantity of contents stated in the lower portion of the front panel in both customary and metric units, and the name and place of business of the producer, packer or distributor. Added ingredients must be declared.
Can I sell honey from my house? That depends on your state’s cottage food law and its honey specific rules. Ask your state department of agriculture and your state apiarist, and check whether registration or an inspection is required before you sell rather than after.
Can I say my honey is raw or unfiltered? Those terms describe processing rather than health effects, and most backyard honey genuinely is both, since it is strained rather than pressure filtered. Keep the wording factual, and avoid anything that implies a medical benefit.
Glass or plastic for honey? Glass for appearance and reuse, plastic for weight, posting and everyday table use. Both are fine as long as the container is food safe and completely dry when filled.
Should I reuse jars people return? For your own use, yes, if they are washed and dried thoroughly. For honey you sell, new containers are the safer choice and are what most state rules expect.
The Bottom Line
Choose containers on how the honey will actually be used, favor wide mouths so crystallized honey stays usable, and treat the label as a legal document the moment money changes hands. The FDA sets the core elements, your state sets everything else through cottage food law, and your state apiarist and department of agriculture are the people to ask. Before any of that, get the honey clean and dry: the straining and bottling guide covers the last step before the jar, and the full equipment list covers the order of the day.