Sweet Harvest Foods Accelerates Production and Innovation with New Honey Extraction Facility

The new facility is part of the company’s dedication to growing and evolving the U.S. honey industry

Cannon Falls, MINN. – October 15, 2025 – Sweet Harvest Foods, the largest producer of raw, unfiltered honey and parent company of Nate’s Honey, today celebrates the opening of a state-of-the-art honey extraction facility in LaBelle, Florida, for Nate’s Hives, a top U.S. apiary. Featuring hive splitting capabilities and an experience center for corporate customers and partners, the new facility represents a strategic expansion of its footprint in Florida, one of the largest beekeeping hubs in the U.S.

“The new building helps us meet sky-rocketing honey demand while putting honey bee health and colony protection at the center of our processes,” said Michael Carle, Chief Executive Officer of Sweet Harvest Foods. “Our new facility in Labelle expands our domestic honey production, supports honey bees and farmers and offers a place to showcase our vision of being the trusted honey company for every home and every occasion, by innovating from the hive to the shelf. Some of our best received product and process innovations have come from collaboration and strategic partnerships, and we look forward to offering a more immersive experience of our apiary and extraction process.”

To commemorate the historic milestone, Sweet Harvest Foods will host a ribbon cutting ceremony today at 2 p.m. EDT. The event will include speeches from:

• Michael Carle, Chief Executive Officer of Sweet Harvest Foods
• Prashanth Prabakar, Chief Operations Officer of Sweet Harvest Foods
• Matt Halbgewachs, President & Head Beekeeper of Nate’s Hives

The honey extraction facility will exclusively harvest honey from Nate’s Hives apiary. It will include innovative technology to enhance best practices with the goal of increasing honey yield while maintaining honey bee health and sustainable beekeeping.

“No one in the U.S. is investing in the infrastructure and honey supply chain like Sweet Harvest Foods. From the high-efficiency equipment to our extraction process, we are expanding our capacity to support honey bees, strengthen domestic honey production and create new opportunities for our partners and customers,” said Prashanth Prabakar, Chief Operations Officer of Sweet Harvest Foods. “Beyond the facility itself, we look forward to meaningful community involvement within Labelle and Hendry County, contributing to both local growth and our ecosystem.”

Nate’s Hives is home to 4 billion honey bees that produce the highest-quality, best-tasting honey for Nate’s Honey. Led by Matt Halbgewachs, President & Head Beekeeper of Nate’s Hives, the Nate’s Hives team includes more than 55 passionate beekeepers and newly appointed experts specializing in agricultural science, beekeeping and pollinator health.

Earlier this month, Sweet Harvest Foods announced the addition of two newly created leadership roles for Nate’s Hives. Joining the Sweet Harvest Foods’ leadership team is Luigi Trotta, vice president of operations, agriculture and apiculture at Nate’s Hives, and Dr. Suresh Bhamidimarri, vice president of agricultural research and development. Together, they establish the company as the first U.S. honey producer with a full-time in-house R&D team dedicated to pollinator science—underscoring its commitment to honey bee health, domestic yields and sustainable agriculture.

About Sweet Harvest Foods
We believe in making life a little sweeter. As the most trusted and leading procurer of honey in the U.S., Sweet Harvest Foods provides the highest-quality ingredients for some of the most iconic brands and products we enjoy today. That’s a serious responsibility, which is why we keep innovating and setting higher standards for ourselves in quality, taste and reliability. And because our customers need a partner they can trust and grow with, we make it easier than ever for businesses to develop, produce and scale their operations. Sweet Harvest Foods is bolstered with consumer insights through its ownership of Nate’s Honey, the #1 branded honey in the country, and with honey crop expertise through Nate’s Hives, a top 5 U.S. beekeeper that provides an integral source for Nate’s Honey.

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