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Is honey vegan?
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This isn't the first time a vegan writer has addressed this question but I'm dissatisfied by the approaches I've observed so far. The debate over the veganity of honey considers whether or not one is cruel or exploitative in harvesting honey from bees.
However, the word "vegan" is not loosely-defined nor a slang term. Rather, "vegan" has a strict definition defended and created by the Vegan Society still operating with educational resources and the first vegan trademark for vegan products. Like it or not, the Vegan Society is the authority on what is or is not vegan. I mean, it's their word! If a company approaches the Vegan Society with a product absent from all animal products except honey, the product will not qualify to carry the logo. the fact that honey is not vegan by definition is compelling.
Imagine if there was an argument over redheads being brunettes. You could go on about the importance and abundance of red hair or any other quality but this is simply not what the word "brunette" means.
However, this is not to say there are not compelling ethical reasons for avoiding the use of bees for honey. The Vegan Society has a page extensively listing reasons why bee products should be avoided. If you want to know how bees are basically factory farmed, follow that link. Otherwise, this excerpt sums it up well.
Because bees are seen flying free, they are also often considered free of the usual cruelties of the animal farming industry. However bees undergo treatments similar to those endured by other farmed animals. They go through the routine examination and handling, artificial feeding regimes, drug and pesticide treatment, genetic manipulation, artificial insemination, transportation (by air, rail and road) and slaughter.
Animal rights
As far as whether or not bees are animals, animal rights theory defines an animal a little differently than would a biologist. Animal rights govern all sentient beings and rights are based on no other cognitive property than sentience. In the case of bees, especially the European Apis mellifera, which is commonly used as a honey bee, they have a brain with sub-brains and complex neuronal ganglia. Bees do feel and participate in familial communities to boot.
It doesn't matter if honey is raw or locally harvested, the production of honey for human use equates to the cruelty and exploitation of sentient beings.
As for the vegans who still aren't convinced, honey is probably the easiest of animal products to avoid. In fact, agave nectar can serve as a natural replacement for honey.
Agave nectar can be purchased raw or hydrolyzed, is sweeter than honey, lower on the glycemic index, I mean come on! Knowing that, why would you even bother with the stuff?
Bees and Plants
The other argument in defense of honey is the utility of bees for the flowering plants which produce so many fruits and vegetables. The argument seems to go that the production of honey and the keeping of bees in captivity is essential to producing vegan food.
However, honey production is actually essential to the smashing and killing of these beings as the above article explains. As a biology student, I also believe this idea is another helping of population dynamics oversimplification or the belief that humans are needed to keep populations of animals within 'normal' amounts. Without getting too technical, bee populations can be supported simply by providing usable resources and habitats specific to the needs of the particular species which would flower the plant/tree.
Pollination, in fact, doesn't actually require a bee. Pollination is simply the exchange of pollen from the anthers to the stamens of a flower or flowers. This means flowering plants can be pollinated artificially; sometimes with nothing more than a brush..png)
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