Mates endure stings, late nights and bad weather to indulge sweet passion

Two close mates united in their passion for people, the outdoors and whole foods have endured many bee stings, late nights and hard work to produce their own brand of honey as a fundraiser for struggling Tasmanians.

Hoozle’s Honey is the sweet result of a partnership between long time friends, Loaves and Fishes CEO, Andrew Hillier, and production manager at Delta Hydraulics, Mark Dance, who developed their small social enterprise to support feeding hungry Tasmanians and teach others about food origins, farming, and sustainability.

They now have five hives in various locations through the Noth-West Coast.

Sales of the raw honey (300g jars) are used to help Loaves and Fishes fulfil its mission of delivering food and hope to Tasmanians doing it tough.

In addition to raising funds to feed vulnerable Tasmanians, Andrew said the goal was in time to include Loaves and Fishes kitchen staff in the harvesting and production process as a teaching opportunity and to strengthen buy-in.

“Both Mark and I are champions of whole foods and the paddock-to-plate approach to combat food insecurity and the associated health concerns so prevalent today,” Andrew said.

“This is definitely a labour of love. We’ve been stung too many times to remember, endured late nights, bad weather and various setbacks in getting Hoozle’s Honey to market. But it’s been worth it.

“We are now producing 150 kilograms of honey per year and plan to continue expanding to make even more money and honey to help those in need.”

As for the name Hoozle’s Honey? The name is a nod to the partnership between “Hoozle” and “Bob”, the respective nicknames of Andrew Hillier and General Manager Aaron Kropf.

“I used to use the name ‘Hoolzebob’ during discussions with Aaron when I couldn’t remember a specific person’s name,” Andrew said, 

“Over time, I became Hoozle and Aaron became Bob.

“It was Aaron who suggested the name Hoozles Honey when we talked about selling honey to help fund the Loaves and Fishes emergency food relief work.

“It stuck.”

Loaves and Fishes also produces and sells olive oil donated from a grove in Forth.

 Hoozle’s Honey and olive oil can be purchased through our website, https://shop.loavesandfishestasmania.org.au/collections/all or at various boutique food outlets throughout Tasmania.