Miel de Provence

The Syndicat des miels de Provence et des Alpes du Sud (SYMPAS), based at the Maison des agriculteurs in Aix-en-Provence, describes itself as the organisation that has been protecting and promoting Provence honeys for over 30 years. It states that it manages the Miel de Provence PGI (IGP) and two Labels Rouges, which it claims guarantees inspected products for consumers.

The website describes a territory stretching from the coast to Haute-Provence, with beehives moved in transhumance towards the mountains of the Alpes du Sud along a traditional route. It presents Miel de Provence as benefiting from both a PGI and the Label Rouge.

The trade association specifies that it manages these three quality marks — checks on operators, honey analyses — as well as defending them against misuse of the designation, for the benefit of consumers. It states that it brings together more than 300 members from across the beekeeping sector (producers, wholesalers, packers) and coordinates promotional initiatives for beekeeping and PACA honeys, notably the organisation of honey festivals.

GAEC Le Jas des Abeilles presents itself as an organic beekeeping farm based in Reillanne, in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, between the Luberon massif, the Montagne de Lure, and Mont-Ventoux. It was founded by a professional beekeeper 'of 25 seasons', joined by his partner around five years ago to establish the agricultural partnership.

Lavender honey is its main product; the farm also practises seasonal transhumance of its hives — rosemary honey on the Côte Bleue, heather in the Var, acacia and chestnut in Isère, and mountain honey in Haute-Loire — and also produces royal jelly, fresh pollen, and propolis. It states that it is certified organic by Ecocert, a member of the Groupement des producteurs de gelée royale since 2016 (Gelée Royale Française label), and committed to the PGI (IGP) Miel de Provence process. The honey house, described as 'bioclimatic', can be visited by appointment.

The apiary is run by beekeeper and harvester Jean-Christian Michel, based at 3351 Route du Val de Durance in Valensole. He specialises in harvesting lavender honey on the plateau de Valensole. Direct sales are available at the honey house by telephone appointment, as well as at the producers' shop; ordering by the full case (6 or 12 kg) is also offered at an advantageous rate.

Gaec Les Ruchers de Puech Cabrier, an organic beekeeping farm in Uchaud (Gard), was established in January 2024 by Katia and Sébastien Floutier, who both run it as farm managers. Sébastien has kept bees since 2018, having spent a decade on his brother's goat and cheese farm, Gaec Floutier Frères, also in Uchaud; Katia, a former French and Latin teacher, joined him as a collaborating spouse in 2022 before setting up as a full-time beekeeper. The couple manage 700 hives under organic beekeeping standards (certified by Ecocert), moved seasonally across several Cévennes massifs and surrounding areas — the Parc National des Cévennes, Petite Camargue, garrigue, Corbières, and the Jura forest.

Depending on the season, they produce chestnut, raspberry, bell heather (Erica), and mountain wildflower honey under the PGI (IGP) Miel des Cévennes; garrigue, Camargue, and lavender honeys fall under the PGI Miel de Provence, also certified Label Rouge. Extraction is carried out on a contract basis by Nectars du Soleil, in Gailhan, near Sommières. Since 2021, the farm has been a member of the Les Miels d'Aristote cooperative, which supplies Biocoop shops nationwide. Katia Floutier also chairs the Groupement Qualité des Miels d'Occitanie-IGP Miel des Cévennes (GQMO-IGP).

Beyond honey, the Gaec processes part of its harvest into value-added products — pain d'épices, soft nougat with lavender honey, honey vinegar, honey spreads — and has lavender honey sweets and pastilles custom-made by the artisanal confectionery Apior in Valensole. Direct sales take place at the farm in Uchaud, where products from the Ferme de Puech Cabrier (located at the same address) are also available, as well as in several organic shops and delicatessens across the Gard and Hérault.