Question 1

Acne

Accepted Answer

We have a time tested solution for acne; even severe acne.
Complete restful sleep, proper diet, exercise, lots of fresh air and fresh pure water are basic to maintaining good health. This is the foundation of good health and perfect skin.
At the end of the day, you may follow this regimen:
Remove makeup with our Royal Jelly Cleanser Moisturizer.
Wait 20 minutes.
Then dip your fingers into our Honey Face Scrub. Work into face with gentle upward circular strokes.
You may continue to rub it into your face for about fifteen minutes.
You will notice that it gets stickier. This last rubbing is good for dislodging white heads and blackheads.
Rinse, preferably with lukewarm water.
You may or may not proceed to wash your face with our Honey Glycerin Face Soap.
If your skin is dry, try our royal jelly face oil.
 
We have also found that drinking fresh fruit and vegetable juices does wonders for your skin, elimination and promotes deep restful sleep.

Question 2

Activation or Log-In Problems

Accepted Answer

If you cannot find your activation email, please check your spam mail. If you are having trouble logging in, please email us with all the details of your particular log-in problem at info@ilogmaria.com

Question 3

Aromatherapy oils

Accepted Answer

Sourcing. It has been our policy to source locally as much as possible. We source our lemongrass, citronella, ylang ylang and other tropical oils locally. We have had some difficulty because the specifications and characteristics of local oils vary widely from source to source. They even vary widely according to the seasons. This has made it very difficult to maintain the integrity of our original formulations. The good news is that we have the experience to do this.
For tropical oils not indigenous or commercially available from the Philippines, we source from Asia.
We source internationally for oils not available in Asia.
Prices. You enjoy lower prices because we use all these oils for most of our products. We are able to get volume discounts on all our purchases from suppliers who we have been dealing with for a very long time. We have been doing this for more than 30 years.
A true test for essential oils is the "cold" soap making process (no external heat applied). Towards the middle of this process, in the saponification stage, the soap mixture enters an exothermic reaction and becomes a gel. Our oils are able to survive the very high temperatures of saponification without breaking down or losing their characteristic scents.
Our oils may be used in soaps, lotions & massage oils when mixed with edible carrier oils. You may use them with water in burners. You may put a few drops on pillows, bed sheets, blankets, curtains or carpets.

Question 4

Ask Someone else to order

Accepted Answer

If you do not have the inclination, time and patience to order from our website, may we suggest the following course of action:
-List down all the items which you would like to order, including the quantity of each item.
-Look for someone in your household, family or neighbourhood who can register for you in     our website.
-Ask her/him to go to our shopping cart and order.
-Then click "submit order",
-This whole process normally takes less than 10 minutes depending on the speed of your   
  internet connection.
-Our website will send both you and us identical copies of your order.
-We will then check if we have enough stocks to fill your order.
-When we determine that we have your order in stock, we will send you a "Confirmation of      Supply" email which will explain the 5 ways with which to pay us and send us proofs of
  payment.
-When we receive proof of payment, we will send you a separate "Confirmation of Receipt of -Payment and Shipment" email and schedule your order for packing and shipping.
-Together with this last email, we will give you ways to track your package, if you don't
  receive it within 24 to 48 hours.
-We will also tell you how to receive your package.
Should you have more time, next time, you should try ordering from our website yourself. It is easy, quick and painless.

Question 5

Bazaars, Fairs, and Expos"

Accepted Answer

We do not yet have the capability to join trade shows or bazaars.
Natural is Seasonal. We harvest the active ingredients of our products from our beehives, each according to the season. Our products derive their seemingly magical effects from their active ingredients: unprocessed honey, beeswax, propolis, pollen and royal jelly that we harvest from our beehives. These harvests from our beehives are seasonal, therefore limited.
Short Supply. Right now, we sell our products here in our farm store and through our website www.ilogmaria.com. Some people buy products from our store and re-sell them without our knowledge or permission. Our products are always in short supply. We are always hard pressed to supply ourselves.
No Staff. We are always undermanned; on purpose. This ensures that everyone works very hard. This also ensures that our products are always priced low. We have no extra staff to attend to bazaars or fairs.
We are laying out plans to greatly increase our capacity in the next five years.
When our children start to join us after they graduate; they may have better ideas on how to allocate our limited resources to expand our business.
We might be able to join bazaars, fairs and EXPOs in the future.
Thank you for keeping us in mind.

Question 6

Bee Pollen

Accepted Answer

Bee pollen is the male seed of a flower blossom which has been gathered by the bees and to which special elements from the bees have been added. The honeybee collects pollen and mixes it with its own digestive enzymes. One pollen granule contains from one hundred thousand to five million pollen spores each capable of reproducing its entire species. Bee pollen is often referred to as nature's most complete food. Human consumption of bee pollen is praised in the Bible, other religious books, and ancient Chinese and Egyptian texts. Research studies document the therapeutic efficacy and safety of bee pollen. Clinical tests show that orally ingested bee pollen particles are rapidly and easily absorbed--they pass directly from the stomach into the blood stream. Within two hours after ingestion, bee pollen is found in the blood, in cerebral spinal fluids, and in the urine.
Bee pollen rejuvenates your body, stimulates organs and glands, enhances vitality, and brings about a longer life span. Bee pollen's ability to consistently and noticeably increase energy levels makes it a favourite substance among many world class athletes and those interested in sustaining and enhancing quality performance. Bee pollen contains most of the known nutrients, including all of those necessary for human survival. When compared to any other food, it contains a higher percentage of all necessary nutrients. Bee pollen is approximately 25% complete protein containing at least 18 amino acids. In addition, bee pollen provides more than a dozen vitamins, 28 minerals, 11 enzymes or co-enzymes, 14 beneficial fatty acids, 11 carbohydrates, and is rich in minerals, the full spectrum of vitamins, and hormones. It is low in calories. Bee pollen proves to be quite useful for activity enhancement and sports nutrition. It produces an accelerated rate of recovery, including a return to normal heart rate, breathing, and readiness for the next event. Bee pollen improves second and subsequent performances. Humans not receiving bee pollen show declining performances. It provides energy, stamina, and strength, and enhances performance levels. Bee pollen should not be confused with the pollen that is blown by the wind and is a common cause of allergies. Allergy-causing pollen is called anemophiles; it is light and easily blown by the wind. Bee pollen is heavier and stickier, and is collected off of bees' legs by special devices placed at the entrance to hives. It is called entomophiles or "friends of the insects," and will rarely cause allergy symptoms. In most cases, it is the antidote for allergies caused by anemophiles or wind blown pollen.

Question 7

Bee Seminars

Accepted Answer

We have reconfigured our bee operation to be able to focus more on bee breeding and the production of bee products:
We are expanding our beekeeping operation continuously until 2012.
We are importing production queens and breeder queens from duly accredited suppliers in Hawaii, Europe, Australia and America under the supervision of UPLB and the Bureau of Plant Industry.
We have been observing strict quarantine procedures to be sure we do not import any disease which can harm or imperil our local honeybee industry.
We also ask UPLB to inspect our bees regularly for any pathogens, disease or parasites. We submit their escort bees to the UPLB Bee Lab for analysis.
We have been using 100% pure organic essential oils twice a tear for about three years to eliminate varroa mites, tropilaelaps clarae and tracheal mites.
We also make sure that breeder queens we import from America pass USDA health standards and do not have any traces of Africanized bee stock. We submit their escort bees to the UPLB Bee Lab for analysis.
We are using USDA Certified "survivor" bee stock which exhibits hygienic behaviour and mite suppressive behaviour.
We will breed island born queens from all these breeder stocks crossed with our own island born survivor bee stock which we have been using for 33 years.
We will thoroughly test these first generation hybrid stocks in our honey, pollen, royal jelly, propolis and bee venom production operations.
We may sell some tested bee stock on a limited basis, and only through and under the supervision of the UPLB Bee Program. We have been working closely with UPLB Bee Program since its inception in 1989.
May we refer you to Dra. Cleofas Cervancia, Director, Institute of Biological Sciences, University of the Philippines at Los Banos, Laguna. Her numbers are: 049 536 2517 / 049 536 2893
Dra. Cervancia runs the UPLB Bee Program and the UPLB Bee Lab. She conducts beekeeping training in April each year and sometimes by request.
She will be happy to help you. Google: UPLB Bee Program.

Question 8

Bee Venom

Accepted Answer

Is secreted by adult bees in their sting glands and stored in the venom sac at the base of the stinger. Throughout the history of civilization, bee venom has been well known as a medicine. Its therapeutic effect and benefits are described in the works of ancient natural scientists and doctors, such as Hippocrates (IV century AD), Plinius (I century), Halen (II century).
Nowadays, extensive research all around the world is being done on its medical applications. In most cases, bee venom is more effective than synthetic products. 
"Everything on earth is venom, nothing lacks venomousness. Only a dose turns substance into venom or medicine", Parcels the great healer used to say more than 300 years ago. 
Bee venom has multiple effects on the body: it improves blood circulation, support physical strength and well being, support to joint mobility, has anti-oxidant effects, support to the immune system.

Question 9

Beeswax

Accepted Answer

Worker honeybees have four special glands under their bodies that convert the simple sugars in honey to beeswax. When the workers are the right age, they position themselves near where the honeycomb is being built. Other worker bees collect the wax as it is produced, chew it up, and shape it into honeycombs.
Honeycombs are built from the top down. Each cell has six sides making maximum use of the space in the combs. The cells are side by side, and the bottoms of the cells connect with the bottoms of other cells on the opposite side of the honeycomb. 
Some of the honeycomb cells are used for the brood which is the nursery where eggs are layed and nursed until they emerge as adult bees. Other honeycomb cells are used to store honey, while others store pollen. Once the cells are filled, they are capped with additional beeswax. 
We do harvest some beeswax, but only every summer.
However, we are the biggest consumer of our own beeswax:
For Beeswax Comb Foundation. This makes up the bulk of our use. We estimate this uses up to 95% of our beeswax production. We use this in our beehives, so our little bees can save their precious energy collecting, storing and ripening honey rather spending it building honeycomb. It takes about 10 kilograms of honey to produce one kilogram of beeswax.
In our products. We also use a lot of beeswax in the production of: candles, face scrub, lotions, moisturizers, ointments, lip balm, wood polish, leather balsam and especially, soaps.
We are not able to sell raw beeswax.
We sometimes have a little extra from our bee operations, and we are able to sell surplus beeswax comb foundation from our website and to walk-in customers in our farm store. These are made of pure beeswax and will suit makers of lip balms and lotions for home use.
If your use is minimal, say one to three sheets, you may buy beeswax comb foundation from our website.

Question 10

Beeswax and Aromatherapy oils

Accepted Answer

We harvest honeycombs from our beehives to extract honey from them. We put damaged and old honeycombs in our solar beeswax melter. We have found out that the sun provides just enough heat to separate the pure beeswax from the bees' silk cocoons in the honeycombs, and not damage it in any way.
We then use pure beeswax for making candles, face scrub, lotions, moisturizers, ointments, lip balm, wood polish, leather balsam and especially, soaps.
It is edible. It is safe.
We twirl pure cotton thread to make wicks. We continuously pass this thread through a block of beeswax to strengthen it and make it burn perfectly.
We offer essential oils for sale only because we use these for all our other products. They should not be used in any skin product in their pure form but mixed with edible oil that is compatible with them.

Question 11

Beeswax clay

Accepted Answer

Beeswax clay is pure beeswax. It is edible.
Waldorf School asked us to make this product for their students. It has been sold for at least ten years. It is safe.
Although we do not recommend that children eat it.
Our beeswax clay can be softened in the hand, in sunlight or by a hair dryer.

Question 12

Beeswax Wood Polish

Accepted Answer

We have been making Beeswax Wood Polish for about twenty years. It is used by many people, especially aficionados of antiques.
Our Beeswax Wood Polish contains: pure beeswax, linseed oil, orange oil and an edible solvent.
Apply a little with a paintbrush. You may use a hair dryer or heat gun so that our wood polish can penetrate your wood better. We also put waxed hardwoods in direct sunlight,
Then buff to a deep lustre. We use coconut coir. If needed, repeat.

Question 13

Botulism and Honey

Accepted Answer

The health books you are reading are correct. Never give your child heated and pasteurized honey.
One of the best environments in which to culture botulinus is in canned goods, i.e., heated, pasteurized and anaerobic. This also represents most honey produced in "more developed" countries. Moreover, heated honey contains an acid, hydroxymethylfurfural or hmf that is a suspected carcinogen. Please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroxymethylfurfural
This is why we never filter or heat our honey. Our honeybees collect each pound of honey from over 2 million flowers. It is precious. We do not even touch it. In its natural state, it retains all of its medicinal and nutritive properties.
but to be sure, you can give honey to kids when he/she is above 1 year old

Question 14

Changing or Adding to your order

Accepted Answer

Changing Orders.
Our server prevents us from interfering with your account or order. This is for your protection.
Should you want to change your order, please feel free to do so. We will cancel your previous order for you, once we receive your new order. We always serve the last order we receive, should there be more than one order, unless you instruct us by email to do otherwise.
Consolidating Your Orders Into One Order.
If you made several orders, you may want to consolidate them into one order. Or, if you want to add to your existing order, please do so. This will save FedEx/Air21 freight charges for you.
Trial Orders.
You may also make trial orders to maximize your freight, adding or deleting items until you get the freight cost you prefer. Just indicate "TRIAL ORDER" instead of your shipping address, as you check out and submit your order. Our server will automatically compute your total shipping weight, adding 200 grams per kilogram, to account for packing materials.
Our server automatically computes shipping costs and total amounts.

Question 15

Custom Order

Accepted Answer

FOR SPAS, RESORTS, HOTELS
Please email us first information about your company, your official designation and contact details. Give us a brief background of your operation and the details of your order. We will then schedule a meeting here, so you will be able to see what we have done so far.
We will supply you for in-house use only. We will print the label with your logo. But it will also have to state: By Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms.

Question 16

Dealers and Dealership

Accepted Answer

We do not have dealers and we do not encourage dealership of our products right now.
We are just a mom & pop operation. We are still hard pressed to supply our only farm store.
Remember that all natural means that our critical inputs are seasonal. Seasonal means limited.
Moreover, we do not put any preservatives in our products, so they have a limited shelf life. It would be unwise to keep our products in stock for a longer time than is usual. Just buy enough for a 1 to 3 months' use.
Take heart though. Our children, who are helping us in their spare time, will soon be in a position to help us full time; God willing.
Our two eldest children, Jonathan and Liaa, are now working with us fulltime. When more of them can join us full time, maybe we they can develop new ways of addressing our limitations.
Please keep us in mind.

Question 17

Farm Store

Accepted Answer

Our only store is in our farm. It is 700 meters East of our sign along Aguinaldo Highway. Our sign is at Km 47; 5 kms. down the highway from Gourmet Café, on the right. Or, about 2 kms. up from the town of Silang going to Tagaytay, on the left. Please look at our map from the Contacts section.
We are open Tuesdays to Sundays, from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Question 18

Gcash payment from a Globe Center

Accepted Answer

We accept GCash payments made at Globe Centers:
You will be asked to fill out a form. The Payee is Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms, Silang Cavite.
The GCash SMS sent to us by the Globe Center will bear the name of the Globe Center, not your name.
Please send a follow up SMS message to 09178029344. State your name or the person whose name is on the order, amount and the reference number of the GCash transaction so we can trace your payment and ship your package.

Question 19

Getting Here by Commuting

Accepted Answer

From Baclaran, ride any bus passing thru Tagaytay.
Alight at Km. 48. There are tricycles there who can bring you here.
They currently charge P30 per person.

Question 20

Getting Here from Eastern Batangas

Accepted Answer

There are two ways to get here from Eastern Batangas:
Thru Tanauan – Talisay. Go to Talisay thru Tanauan. Go past the town of Talisay and look for the right turn going to Tagaytay. Turn right and go up to Tagaytay. Turn left in Tagaytay towards the rotunda. Turn right at the rotunda. Go down along Aguinaldo Highway to Manila. Our sign is 5 kms. down from Gourmet Café, on the right. You will see our yellow on blue "Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms" sign on the right, just before km 47. Turn right, we are 700 meters at the end of the one way gravel road.
Thru Star Tollway – Talisay. From Star Tollway, take the exit going to Talisay. Go past the town of Talisay and look for the right turn going to Tagaytay. Turn right and go up to Tagaytay. Turn left in Tagaytay towards the rotunda. Turn right at the rotunda. Go down along Aguinaldo Highway to Manila. Our sign is 5 kms. down from Gourmet Café, on the right. You will see our yellow on blue "Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms" sign on the right, just before km 47. Turn right, we are 700 meters at the end of the one way gravel road.
Give way to oncoming vehicles. Mutual respect and charity keep this road open.

Question 21

Getting Here from Sta. Rosa

Accepted Answer

Go up to Tagaytay.
Turn right at Tagaytay until you reach the rotunda.
Turn right at the rotunda.
Go down along Aguinaldo Highway to Manila. Our sign is 5 kms down from Gourmet Café, on the right. You will see our yellow on blue "Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms" sign on the right, just before km 47. Turn right, we are 700 meters at the end of the one way gravel road.
Give way to oncoming vehicles. Mutual respect and charity keep this road open.

Question 22

Getting Here from Western Batangas

Accepted Answer

Thru Balayan – Tuy. From Batangas City, go thru the towns of: Bauan, Lemery, Taal, Calaca, Balayan, Tuy then turn right at the junction to Tagaytay.
Thru Lemery. Turn up thru Diokno Highway to Tagaytay. Turn right at the Nasugbu – Tagaytay Boundary.
Turn left at the Tagaytay rotunda. Go down along Aguinaldo Highway to Manila. Our sign is 5 kms. down from Gourmet Café, on the right. You will see our yellow on blue "Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms" sign on the right, just before km 47. Turn right, we are 700 meters at the end of the one way gravel road.
Give way to oncoming vehicles. Mutual respect and charity keep this road open.

Question 23

Getting Here thru Coastal Road-Aguinaldo Highway

Accepted Answer

From Baclaran proceed to Coastal Road. Pass Bacoor, then Imus, then Dasmarinas. Continue upwards in the general direction of Tagaytay.
We are 20 minutes from Big R and SM Dasmarinas. Go up the road towards Tagaytay, pass the town of Silang.
At km 45 you will see AIIAS on your left. Then you go along a sweeping left-hand curve at Km. 46 When you reach Km. 47 (sign is on the right), look to your left. You will see our yellow on blue "Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms" sign. Turn left at our sign. We are 700 meters at the end of the one way gravel road.
Give way to oncoming vehicles. Mutual respect and charity keep this road open.

Question 24

Getting Here thru SLEX

Accepted Answer

ake SLEX going South. Exit SLEX at Southwoods. Do not turn left to Southwoods. Take the second left turn to Silmer Village. Follow the line of cars through Silmer. This line will exit at Governor's Drive, Carmona. Turn right when you reach the triangle at Carmona. The road will go through a zig zag, going up.
You will pass a 1st Shell station on the right, then a Globe Telecom Office, also on the right. Turn left at the corner before the 2nd Shell station. The road will go through Magguyam, Kaong and Sabutan, all in Silang Town.
At the end of this 7 km short cut, turn left at the Sea Oil gas station. After about 100 meters, turn immediately right on the next corner. You will have to watch out for this corner. This road exits on Aguinaldo Highway. When you reach Aguinaldo Highway, turn left. You will go up towards Tagaytay. Our road sign is exactly 2.3 kms. from here.
At km 45 you will see AIIAS on your left. Then you go along a sweeping left-hand curve at Km. 46 When you reach Km. 47 (sign is on the right), look to your left. You will see our yellow on blue "Ilog Maria Honeybee Farms" sign. Turn left at our sign. We are 700 meters at the end of the one-way gravel road.
Give way to oncoming vehicles. Mutual respect and charity keep this road open.

Question 25

Giveaways

Accepted Answer

We have been packaging our products as giveaways for about 30 years.
We have done giveaways for: Weddings, Anniversaries, Christmas, NGOs, Corporations and Government.
The main features of our giveaways are:
They are tailored to fit the giver and prospective recipients.
They are all hand made.
Bags, boxes and other packaging materials are all made here in our bee farm and by selected suppliers all based in Silang, Cavite.
We source most of our raw materials locally. Our products are mostly all-Filipino.
They are all freshly made and freshly packaged.
They can be configured to meet any budget.
You will benefit much from her personal experience in this field.
Best prepare by first browsing our website. Then email us your requirements.
Best results are when you can come to our store and select from our many products, buckets native bags and baskets. My wife, Violaine, is very experienced at this because she handles our production, product development and packaging operations.

Question 26

Honey

Accepted Answer

Honeybees digest nectar to make honey. Nectar is almost 80% water with some complex sugars. In fact, if you have ever pulled a blossom out of its stem, nectar is the clear liquid that drops from the end of the blossom. In the Philippines, bees get nectar from flowers like wild vines, sunflower, coffee, avocado, citrus, mango, acacia, mahogany, narra, gmelina, tamarind, eucalyptus and fruit tree blossoms. They use their long, tubelike tongues like straws to suck the nectar out of the flowers and they store it in their "honey stomachs". Bees actually have two stomachs, their honey stomach which they use like a nectar backpack and their regular stomach. The honey stomach holds almost 70 mg of nectar and when full, it weighs almost as much as the bee does. Honeybees must visit between 1000 and 1500 flowers in order to fill their honey stomachs. The honeybees return to the hive and pass the nectar onto other worker bees. These bees suck the nectar from the honeybee's stomach through their mouths. These "house bees" "chew" the nectar for about half an hour. During this time, enzymes are breaking the complex sugars in the nectar into simple sugars so that it is both more digestible for the bees and less likely to be attacked by bacteria while it is stored within the hive. The bees then spread the nectar throughout the honeycombs where water evaporates from it, making it a thicker syrup. The bees make the nectar dry even faster by fanning it with their wings. Once the honey is gooey enough (about 18% water, the bees seal off the cell of the honeycomb with a plug of wax. The honey is stored until it is eaten. In one year, a colony of bees eats between 120 and 200 pounds of honey.

Question 27

Honey and Diabetes

Accepted Answer

Blame Alexander the Great. When Alexander conquered the Far East, he brought home with him to the "Old World", the sugar cane plant.
The only sweetener known to man since prehistoric times was honey. Modern diseases had not emerged as long as people had used honey. In fact, people were healthier then.
The first production of sugar from sugar-cane took place in India. Alexander the Great's companions reported seeing "honey produced without the intervention of bees" and it remained exotic in Europe until the Arabs started cultivating it in Sicily and Spain. Only after the Crusades did it begin to rival honey as a sweetener in Europe. The Spanish began cultivating sugar-cane in the West Indies in 1506 (and in Cuba in 1523). The Portuguese first cultivated sugar-cane in Brazil in 1532. (ref. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar )
Over consumption of processed carbohydrates, such as white sugar, white flour and white rice, plus a genetic pre-disposition (plus family culture, habits and practices), can lead to diabetes. These overload our system so much that it cannot process the by products of our digestion of these foods. Our modern lifestyle is not active but sedentary. We get fat and a lot of complications start to occur, including diabetes.
Diabetic people have a hard time metabolizing sucrose, a complex over processed carbohydrate.
Dr. A. Y. Davidov of Russia has found honey a good substitute for sugar and other sweet foodstuffs in diabetes. Dr. Davidov believes that honey prevents acetonemia and diminishes the amount of sugar in the urine in spite of the fact that honey contains 75% sugar. One of his patients used one pound of honey in ten days without an increase of the sugar rate in the urine. When the use of honey was stopped for a while the sugar percentage in the urine rose and the patient was again given four teaspoonfuls of honey daily, after which the sugar rate again dropped. Dr. Davidov reported six more instances where honey had a beneficial effect in diabetes.
Dr. L. R. Emerick of Eaton, Ohio, a specialist in diabetes, used honey in the diet of more than 250 diabetic patients with success. The fame of the late Dr. R. J. Goss of Middlebury, Vermont, was proclaimed throughout the State for helping diabetics on a honey diet. A neighbour of his related that he has seen many patients arrive for treatments weak and emaciated but they soon gained in weight, looked splendid and were able to walk for miles.
Professor A. Szent-Györgyi, the discoverer of Vitamin C, published interesting results which he obtained by peroral administration of succinic acid in the treatment of acidosis of diabetics (Orvosi Hetilap. Budapest, No. 24, June 12, 1937). These, if confirmed, may explain the beneficial effects of various acids, among others lactic, succinic, citric, malic acid, etc., which honey contains. The formation of dangerous acetone in diabetes is possibly corrected through the aid of these acids. (ref. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar )
Important: We would earnestly caution diabetics not to use honey without the advice and strict control of their physicians.
Propolis and Diabetes
Propolis is a natural immune-supporting substance gathered by honey bees from trees and used to protect the hive against infections. Propolis can reduce the symptoms of diabetes, by helping the pancreas to produce insulin. Propolis can work particularly well with Royal Jelly. However, please note that diabetes is a chronic condition, with no known cure. Our aim when advising people on taking Propolis and Royal Jelly, is to provide them with the nutrients to reduce their symptoms, and hence their frequency of insulin injections or tablet usage. (ref. http://www.nzpurehealth.com/suffer_details.php?suffer_name=Diabetes )
Honey Cider Vinegar and Propolis for Diabetes
The Internet is rife with findings that apple cider vinegar lowers blood glucose levels, too numerous to excerpt here. Please just Google search using "cider vinegar for diabetes".
Let it suffice to say that Honey Cider Vinegar is better than apple cider vinegar. In fact, some "folk remedies" require that you mix honey with apple cider vinegar in a glass of water.
Personal Choice
Western medicine will save your life. But Eastern medicine will heal you. Taking bee products as food supplements is a matter of choice. Discontinuing chemical medication in favour of natural medicine is also a matter of choice.
Healthy Habits
We will have to help these natural food supplements do their job.
Eat healthy foods. Eliminate unhealthy foods; those high in sugar, cholesterol, trans-fats, white flour, salt, preservatives and chemical colors and flavors.
Take lots of fresh clean water, fruits and vegetables.
Get 8 hours or more of sleep.
Do some mild walking, about 1 hour, daily. Make sure that you get your pulse rate up, that you breathe deeply and that you work up a sweat. Get lots of fresh, clean oxygenated air. Get some regular outdoor time daily.
If possible, avoid chemical medicine. Take anything natural and non-invasive.
These can put us on the road to good health and healthy immune systems.
Regular Blood Testing and Check-Ups
Lastly, see your doctor regularly. But guide your doctor by giving him/her feedback from being sensitive to your body.

Question 28

Honey Cider Vinegar

Accepted Answer

We harvest honey in late summer only when our bees have a surplus. We know that honey is ripe when our bees cover it with their own beeswax. We scrape this beeswax "capping" and we spin the honey out in our centrifugal extractor.
We do not heat or filter our honey.
We rinse all our honey extraction equipment with lukewarm water. We add bee pollen to this rinse honey-water to add to its natural yeasts. It turns into honey wine or honey meade.
We allow this meade to go through another natural fermentation and it turns into honey cider vinegar. It is cider vinegar because it is not completely fermented into a full vinegar. Full vinegar is very sour. Honey Cider Vinegar is sweet-sour.
When taken in a glass of water, honey cider vinegar promotes an alkaline body reaction. When our bodies are acid in reaction, we get sick. When they are alkaline in reaction, this means that we are healthy.
Moreover, when we have an acid body reaction, our bodies accumulate a lot of acids or salts: uric acid, cholesterol, sugar. An alkaline reaction reverses this accumulation. Furthermore, our bodies' acidic reaction melts our bones. An alkaline body reaction prevents this.
Honey cider vinegar also promotes good excretion: urination and bowel movement. It acts as a diuretic. It also acts as a lubricant for the lining of our intestines. This is why it helps lower blood pressure.
We have found that it is safe, except for those who have damaged digestive systems: with ulcers or intestinal wounds.

Question 29

Honey Granulation

Accepted Answer

When we put our sunflower honey in our store, it gave rise to many questions. It granulates. Granulation is normal. Our honey granulates from time to time, depending on our harvest.
Please Google: honey granulation.
Rather than explaining it to each and every one who asks, we kept it and reserved it for our household use. It is probably our best honey.

Question 30

Honey Propolis Shampoo

Accepted Answer

Our shampoo has been in production for more than 25 years. At first, my wife Violaine just made it for our household use.
If it was Christmas or your birthday, she might have given you some. People started to look for it.
If you are used to chemical-based factory-made shampoos, you will look for a lot of lather, even if you use only a little water. This is because almost all commercial shampoos contain SLS or Sodium Lauryl Sulfate. SLS is a degreaser. It melts grease even if you use only a little. It works and suds up even if you use only a little water. SLS is used in anything that needs to be lathery or bubbly. It is also used in soaps; even toothpaste.
It is a suspected carcinogen.
Toothpaste sold abroad contains a warning: "Do Not Swallow."
My wife still makes our shampoo in small batches from scratch. She uses only natural ingredients. She even uses Honey and Propolis from our own bees. She will not do it any other way.
I use it daily. But my wife lets me use what remains of each batch in a pitcher. I have to put a lot of water to "melt" the shampoo that sticks to the bottom.
It is very bubbly and lathers well. I rinse it out with a lot of water….lots.
I have found that using it has eliminated dandruff. More importantly, I experience new hair growth. I am 56. I used to be almost bald. Now, my hair is growing back.
I shampoo twice not because I need to, but because it feels so good. My wife puts a little herb and spearmint oil also to ease itchy "chemically irritated" scalp.
My hair is squeaky clean afterwards. If you find that our shampoo leaves too strong a cool effect, please shampoo twice using a little shampoo at a time. And rinse off very quickly with lots of water.
When my hair is long, I cut 2 kalamansi and rub them all over my hair. Then I rinse off with, again, a lot of water.
Kalamasi, especially the pulp and skin, contains limonene oil. This is the very best hair conditioner. Our grandmothers used it after washing their hair in gugo.
This is why there are instructions to use kalamansi after washing your hair with our natural shampoo. Sila ang mag partner.
Natural products take a while to master, may certain style ang paggamit.

Question 31

Honey Propolis Throat Spray

Accepted Answer

When we were starting, we stumbled on an ancient recipe for Italian opera singers, modified it and found an inexpensive spray bottle for it. It worked wonders for itchy throats, sneezing, coughing or for whenever we felt the symptoms of a cold, cough or fever coming on.
We used it even when we still lived in our little shack here on the farm. We had no electricity or running water. We already had four kids.
We dubbed it our "throat spray".
We were always short of cash, so we gave our throat spray as birthday and Christmas presents.
One day, a lady riding a brand new Volvo visited us. She insisted that we sell all our present and future throat spray production to her; that we sign an agreement. She owned a large multi-level marketing outfit. She would put her own brand on it.
My wife was favourably disposed to her offer. We had no cash. I was not. After several visits, they were almost reaching an agreement.
This woman declared, "You will have to multiply your farm price by 6 to match my own retail price."
I had had enough. I said, "I think not ma'am and I promise you one thing. The price will always stay the same." The price of our throat spray has stayed essentially the same, except for minor adjustments to account for increased packaging cost.
It is probably the only product where we lose money.
But our throat spray is probably our best product. And everyone who has tried it carries it with them wherever they go.
That's good enough for us.
We have been taking propolis and propolis products for 33 years. They still work like a charm.
We recommend that you store all throat sprayers in your refrigerator, except the one in use. We have found that, even if our throat spray will keep for a very long while, putting your extra sprayers in the ref will keep them very fresh for a longer time; say a year.

Question 32

Honey Rationing

Accepted Answer

If we are able to harvest honey this summer, we will have to ration it, one bottle per customer.
We began to lose our bees in 2006 to the worldwide phenomenon called Colony Collapse Disorder or CCD. We ran out of stocks of honey 2006. We were not able to harvest honey for the first time in 33 years. We were not able to harvest honey in 2009. Our bees had ample supplies of honey in their beehives but there was no surplus honey. We made a small harvest in 2010. We harvested a little more in 2011.
We have experienced La Nina for the last three years.
This means that continuous and un-seasonal rains have suppressed the blooms of flowers from which our bees gather nectar, which they turn into honey.
We are importing bees in bulk from Australia, Hawaii and Europe to boost our production capacity.
We are working with UPLB and the Bureau of Plant industry; following all quarantine regulations.
Mid-2009, we got USDA certified "survivor" breeder stock to upgrade our bee breeding. We are also getting "survivor" breeder stock from Australia.
This stock regularly goes through a process, which selects for: gentle temperament, rapid population growth and high production.
In 2010 and 2011, we have been getting ur bees from "survivor" operations in Australia and Hawaii.
We gone off the grid and have radically changed to the most natural mode of operations.
We have also reinvented our bee technology.
This has allowed us to grow our bee operation once more.
We are not yet back to where we were, but there is progress.
If you use honey as sugar replacement, we recommend mascovado.
We are producing all the other products sold in our store normally. We have enough stocks of:
Propolis is good for colds, coughs, asthma, any infection and fevers.
Pollen is the best multi vitamin, energizer and fat burner.
Royal Jelly is good for sleep, relaxing and balancing hormones.
Honey is good for all the above effects, just because it has traces of propolis, pollen and royal jelly.
This means that it is better and cheaper to take these products in their pure and concentrated form; rather than eating honey alone.

Question 33

How Can I Buy

Accepted Answer

Register First.
Please register first. You can use your username and password for the next times you buy. Our server will send your activation email immediately. If you don't receive it immediately, look in your bulk or spam folders. Most times, it is there. Answer this "Activation Email" to activate your registration.
 
Shopping Cart.
Go to the shopping Cart and "Add" any item. You may "add" or "delete" any item to maximize shipping cost. Then "Check Out" and "Submit Order". Our server will send you a copy of your order. If you wish to add or take out any item after you receive a copy of your order, you may go back to your shopping cart and do so. Then "Submit Order".
 
Offline.
We are usually online except evenings, weekends and Mondays, our days off.
Confirmation of Supply. We always have limited stocks. Usually, our stocks are sold out weekends and holidays. It takes us some days to replenish. We will send you a "Confirmation of Supply" email when we have all items in your order in stock.
 
Payment.
There are 5 ways to pay us and send proof of payment. We have no landline or fax. Please use email to communicate with us.
 
Shipping. We ship by Air21 mondays-fridays after receiving proof of payment to any point in the Philippines.
 
Receiving.
Please make sure that all items in your package are in order. Do not accept if the items are damaged or if not all of them are in your package. FedEx/Air21 will return the package to us. Please informus by emailwhy you returned your package.
 
All Orders Received. All orders have been shipped and received since we started our website shopping cart in 1999. FedEx/Air21 has replaced all damaged orders.
Green. Our website saves enormous amounts of time, fuel, energy and carbon emissions.

Question 34

Interviews

Accepted Answer

Our website has more than enough information for several magazine articles. You may read through it at your convenience and leisure. We have also archived some of the articles written about us in our website.
We usually very busy and do not have time to give interviews. We do not answer interviews by email and interviews by text.
If our website does not provide enough information, please email us. We can direct you to a particular section or topic which may be of help.

Question 35

No Media Features

Accepted Answer

We have avoided TV & Radio coverage for the past 12 years because:
We are deluged with busybodies and 'usiseros' after every media exposure. Being very private people, we are shocked to find out how Filipinos handle public property. It seems that everyone who visits wants to know everything about us.
We are overrun with people who simply make us one of their stops, or complete with picnic baskets, want to spend a day here. Some even want to take a dip in our river.
We are besieged with offers from many other members of the media who also want to feature us.
However, we welcome people with a genuine interest in what we do. We also welcome people who need healing; the natural way.
We do not wish to seem snobbish. We have lived here in isolation for over 30 years. This has made us very private people. We have become acutely sensitive and are easily offended by persons who are insensitive. Please respect our privacy.

Question 36

Ordering From Abroad

Accepted Answer

There is one way to order from us, if you are abroad. This is to order straight from our website. Then ask someone who is travelling there, from the Philippines, to bring your order.
We have discontinued shipping by FedEx abroad. After 9/11, we encountered so much red tape from bureaucracies in other countries that we evolved one way of getting our products to you, if you live in another country.
This is the time honoured Filipino custom of "habilin" or "padala".
 
HOW TO ORDER:
Register in our website www.ilogmaria.com
Put your name, address and phone number as customer.
Make a straight order from our "Shopping Cart". Put name of the one who will bring our products and his/her address, cell phone and landline in "ship to".
You may ask this person to pay and send proof of payment to us.
HOW TO PAY:
Our website will send you an email of your order and the total amount to be paid.
We will send you a "Confirmation of Supply" email which contains seven ways to pay and how proof of payment can be sent to us.
When you have chosen one method, email the one who will bring our products, your order and your preferred method of paying.
Tell him/her to scan or take a picture of the deposit slip and send it to info@ilogmaria.com
WE SHIP:
We ship on weekdays if we receive his/her email before 12 noon of these days.
Please consider that, most likely, the person who will come here and bring our products back to you will not have the time and inclination to follow our procedures. You will need to "hold their hands" through the process.
Please time everything to make allowances for any eventuality.
Please order far enough in advance so they will receive the goods in Manila in time for his/her flight.

Question 37

Outlets

Accepted Answer

We are a small farm-based family operation. We have decided to keep it that way. This means that we have also decided not to open any outlet aside from our farm store.
An additional outlet will only add costs:
Rent.
Utilities.
Delivery and Sales Personnel.
Additional Administrative Personnel.
Additional packaging.
Delivery, Handling, Inventory Costs.
Advertising and Promotional Costs.
We estimate we would have to sell our items at 150% to 250% of our farm store prices in a Manila outlet just to break even.
Moreover, we will be hard pressed to supply & re-supply such an outlet.
This does not include your own direct costs to buy in a Manila outlet: fuel, depreciation, parking, time and effort.
For this reason, we have developed this e-commerce website. It has a "Shopping Cart" or online store. It is the cheapest and most convenient way to enjoy our products.
Our website processes all orders.

Question 38

Overweight Package

Accepted Answer

You may find that our website totalled your order, but your package is slightly overweight.
Average packaging weight of 200 grams is added for each order that will fit in a "Zesto" box. This includes the box itself and cushioning materials.
Sometimes, this makes a package exceed the allotted kilogram/s. If this is so, then Fedex will charge equivalent to the next whole kilogram.
For example, an order of 1 honey and 1 honey cider vinegar is 450g + 450g = 900g. Our Shopping Cart adds 200g for packaging/cushioning materials. This makes the total 1100g. Shipping and handling charge will be for 2 kgs. If weight exceeds I kilogram, FedEx considers the total package weight to be 2 kilograms.
Please make a trial order to check out how our Shopping Cart operates. You may cancel this order if it does not suit you. Or, you may adjust items to suit your preferred shipping weight or total amount.
This is one of the reasons why we automated ordering. Customers have the flexibility to manage total shipping weights; adding or deducting items to maximize their shipping costs.

Question 39

Propolis

Accepted Answer

PROPOLIS is often called "bee glue." It is the sticky resin that seeps from the buds of some trees and oozes from the bark of others. It is part of trees' immune systems. There are only a few propolis-gathering experts in each hive. Bees of foraging age collect propolis only on warm days when the resin is soft and pliable. As the resin is gathered, it is blended with wax flakes secreted from special glands on the abdomen of the bee. The mixture is then kneaded or molded into a tiny ball and placed into the pollen baskets located on the legs of the bee. When the source is exhausted she flies to another area to gather until her pollen baskets are full. It may take an hour to fill her baskets. The same procedure is used in reverse when she takes her load back to the hive where the receiving bees help unload and store the substance. This procedure can take several hours.
Propolis is used to reduce the size of the entrance and to patch up holes or cracks. It is also used as an antiseptic, lining each cell and the interior of the hive. If another insect enters the hive, it is promptly killed and removed. If the body is too large to remove, it is covered with propolis to mummify it; keeps contaminants from putrefaction from harming the hive.
Pliny, the Elder (79-23 BC) divided propolis into three categories: 1) commosis - referring to its use as a disinfectant; 2) pissoceros - referring to its use as a structural reinforcement; 3) propolis --referring to the reduction of the entrance to the bee's city or "polis." Pliny also describes the medicinal action of propolis on humans in the reduction of swelling, the soothing of pain, and the healing of open sores.
It is reported that the renowned Stradivarius (1644-1737 AD) hand mixed his own propolis varnish to polish his handcrafted instruments. Having made only 1,116 stringed instruments, no one has ever been able to duplicate his workmanship or his recipe for this varnish.
During the Boer War (1888-1902 AD), propolis was mixed with petroleum jelly and used successfully to disinfect wounds. Before the days of antibiotics, propolis was used most often to combat infections. More recently, it has shown to be effective against bacteria resistant to penicillin, ampicillin, methicillin, streptomycin, chloramphenicaol, oxytetracycline, erythromycin, and sulfathiazole. It is also effective against E. coli and salmonella.
Used with alcohol, propolis has removed molds and fungi more efficiently and for a longer period of time than standard remedies. Propolis has antiseptic, antibiotic, antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties. Scientists state that at least part of this can be attributed to the galangin, caffeic acid, and ferulic acid components. Other known components of propolis include: 55% balsam and resinous compounds, 30% beeswax, 10% ethereal and aromatic oils, 5% pollen, plus flavonoids, cinnamic acid, cinnamyl alcohol, vanillin, caffeic acid, tetochrysin, isalpinin, pinocembrin, chrysin, galangin, and ferulic acid. Propolis is said to have 500 times more flavonoids than the average orange.

Question 40

Propolis

Accepted Answer

Propolis strengthens the body's auto immune system. I have been taking it for about 30 years. I can't even remember the last time I had a cold.
Modern living damages our auto immune system. When our immune system is weakened, we are susceptible to infections, like colds, coughs, flu, etc.
Propolis, taken in little doses, strengthens our immune system. But, we will have to help these natural food supplements do their job.
First, eat healthy foods. Eliminate unhealthy foods.
Take lots of water, fruits and vegetables.
Get 8 hours or more of sleep.
Do some mild walking, about 1 hour, daily. Get lots of fresh, clean air.
If possible, avoid chemical medicine. Take anything natural and non-invasive.
This can put us on the road to good health and healthy immune systems.
Fortunately, propolis is a natural secretion of trees, nobody builds up a resistance to it. Its beneficial effects are progressive and cumulative.
Personally, I take propolis in gulps. I credit propolis for saving my life. When my blood pressure climbed to over 300, I did not bleed. Propolis, taken over time, will strengthen cell walls. See "How my Bees Helped Cure my Stroke Paralysis" in the "Beekeeping" section of our website.
Our children have been taking propolis since after they were conceived. Violaine, my wife, gives them a strong dose first thing in the morning everyday. The last time they were in a hospital is when they were born.
Please exercise a little prudence when taking propolis. It is extracted with organic coconut brandy and you might be sensitive to it. Take very small amounts at first, building up to our recommended dosage.
For babies, give them a 1 or 2 drops first, with their milk. When favorable reactions are seen, build up to 10 drops a day. It will be better to give them a few drops per feeding.

Question 41

Propolis and Arthritis-Gout

Accepted Answer

Propolis Gold strengthens the body's auto immune system.
Modern living takes most of it's toll in our auto immune system. When our immune system is weakened, we are susceptible to infections, like colds, coughs, flu, etc. We are also susceptible to arthritis and gout.
Propolis Gold, taken with honey cider vinegar, is excellent for gout and arthritis. But, we will have to help these natural food supplements do their job.
First, eliminate uric acid sources from our diets: meats, beans, tomatoes, eggplants, canned goods, etc. Then, eliminate foods which create an acid reaction in our bodies: soft drinks, beer, alcohol, white rice, white sugar and baked goods.
Take lots of water, fruits and vegetables. It is very important to excrete wastes and toxins. Your urine should have no color. You should be eliminating feces 2 to 3 times a day.
Get 8 hours or more of sleep.
Do some mild walking, about 1 hour, daily.
All the above can put us on the road to good health and healthy immune systems.
But please remember, we have been saving a lot of uric acid in our bodies for years. It is deposited in areas with poor circulation like in our joints.
It will take a very long time to get rid of it.
For stubborn cases of gout we recommend Bee Venom Therapy

Question 42

Propolis and Cancer

Accepted Answer

Propolis Gold strengthens the body's autoimmune system. I have been taking it for more than 30 years. I can't even remember the last time I had a cold.
Modern living takes most of its toll on our auto immune system. When our immune system is weakened, we are susceptible to infections, like colds, coughs, flu, etc.
Our immune systems are under constant attack by air pollution and water pollution. To make matters worse, our immune systems are weakened and taxed by the trace chemicals and minute poisons in the food we eat. Over processed, preserved foods and fast foods are also one of the main culprits. Add herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, electromagnetic fields, radio frequency radiation, xrays, microwave radiation, depleted uranium dust, radiation from nuclear reactors, etc.
We get sick when our battered immune systems cannot perform their primordial function of protecting our bodies from infections. So, we resort to chemical medicines; treating the symptoms but not the causes. This practice of over consumption of medicines further weakens our immune systems and is one of the leading causes of death in America.
Remember that our autoimmune systems have good memories; this is why they are so effective. This is also the reason for vaccinations. When we are vaccinated for smallpox as children, we are not going to get sick of smallpox even into adulthood. If we take medicines that signal to our immune systems that it is they who will fight an infection, our immune system remembers and slowly shuts down.
Bee Propolis is a powerful natural anti-oxidant which combats the oxidizing effects of: exposure to all kinds of pollution, eating processed foods, preserved foods and ingestion or contact with other carcinogenic or oxidizing agents. It also helps leach out heavy metals like silver, cadmium, lead, aluminium, etc.
Bee Propolis is one of few substances in nature that enhances and strengthens your immune system; it is a "Probiotic". "Probiotic" because it raises the body's natural resistance to disease by internally stimulating our own immune system. It fortifies our body chemistry to ward off disease. It helps our body systems get rid of wastes: toxins and carbon dioxide in our blood. Propolis strengthens the thymus gland to increase your life energy.
Propolis also helps in the regeneration of the pancreas.
Propolis Gold, taken daily in little doses, strengthens our immune system. But, we will have to help this natural food supplement do its job.
Eat healthy foods. Eliminate unhealthy foods; those high in sugar, cholesterol, trans-fats, white flour, salt, preservatives and chemical colours and flavours.
Take lots of fresh clean water, fruits and vegetables. Drinking fresh fruit and vegetable juice is one of the best things you can do.
Get 8 hours or more of sleep.
Do some mild walking, about 1 hour, daily. Make sure that you get your pulse rate up. Breathe deeply and that you work up a sweat. Get lots of fresh, clean oxygenated air. Get some regular outdoor time daily.
If possible, avoid chemical medicine. Take anything natural and non-invasive.
All the above can put us on the road to good health and healthy immune systems.
Fortunately, propolis is a natural secretion of trees, nobody builds up a resistance to it. Its beneficial effects are progressive and cumulative.
Personally, I take propolis in gulps. I credit propolis for saving my life. When my blood pressure climbed to over 300, I did not bleed. Propolis, taken over time, will strengthen your cell walls.
We have many stories about people who have survived cancer. Please visit us Wednesday mornings to find out first hand.

Question 43

Propolis Ointment

Accepted Answer

Our propolis ointment is a blend of beeswax, olive oil, propolis concentrate and essential oil of eucalyptus.
It is all natural and safe. Our family, friends and many other customers have been using it for over 20 years.
It will work well for:
Babies' diaper rash
Any kind of rash or itch
Acne
Insect bites
Bee stings
Infected or ulcerated wounds
Wounds from corals or spines of fish
Fungal infections depending on the condition of your immune system and skin.
Eczema
It is best to wash with propolis feminine wash (this has extra doses of propolis), dry the area and apply ointment.

Question 44

Propolis Shelf Life

Accepted Answer

Propolis is nature's most powerful Pro-Biotic.
Our European honeybees collect propolis the flowering buds and the bark of trees in clean & cool highlands of Silang, the largest town in the Cavite uplands. They masticate and "condition" this propolis to make it softer and varnish their entire beehives and honeycombs with it. When this is done, they deposit it in special "propolis traps" in our beehives.
Propolis is part of trees' immune systems. Propolis fights bacteria, fungi & viruses that attack trees. Our bees and use this bee propolis to varnish the insides of their entire beehives; including the insides of all the cells in their honeycombs to sanitize all that propolis touches.
Each time an attacker, stung to death inside the beehive, is too heavy to be pulled out; our bees embalm it with their propolis. This bee propolis-embalmed moth, mouse or lizard is preserved by the bee propolis and is perfectly mummified without putrefaction or decay. This is perfect proof of the potency of propolis. In fact, Lenin's corpse is also embalmed in propolis and is perfectly preserved in a glass coffin for all to see.
Bee Propolis is packed with phytochemicals and anti-oxidants which combat the ill effects of exposure to all kinds of pollution, carcinogenic substances, carcinogenic conditions and eating processed or preserved foods.
After almost thirty years, we have found the perfect solvent for absorbing all the beneficial contents of bee propolis. Coconut brandy has its own monolaurins that strengthen your immune system. My childhood friend Philip Eleazar, runs two huge coconut plantations in Cotabato, Mindanao. His plantations have never seen fertilizers and any chemicals. He produces Don Felipe organic coconut brandy from fermented coconut sap.
We collect bee propolis and macerate it in Don Felipe organic coconut brandy in our cellars for about two years. After waiting so long in the cellar, it becomes Ilog Maria Bee Propolis. Ilog Maria Propolis is the living essence of bee propolis.
We can then carefully decant Ilog Maria Bee Propolis in its fully concentrated form. We then mix some honey into it to make it more palatable.
Propolis was used in the ancient "Book of the Dead" in Egypt as an essential ingredient in mummification. Propolis was used by the master luthiers of Cremona, Italy: Antonio Stradivari and Pietro Giovanni Guarneri, who made the legendary Stradivarius and Guarnerius violins which survive to the day, about 400 years later.
Propolis is a natural preservative which we use on almost all our products.
Bees use it to embalm attackers.
Egyptians used it to embalm their dead.
Russians used it to embalm Lenin.
Italian violin makers used it to preserve their violins.
We put it in organic brandy to get all its active ingredients, this brandy also acts as a natural preservative.

Question 45

Propolis Tooth Powder

Accepted Answer

Commercial toothpaste contains many chemicals:
SLS. Sodium laureth sulfate or sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLS or SLES), is a detergent and surfactant found in many personal care products (soaps, shampoos, toothpaste etc.). It is an inexpensive and very effective foamer. It is suspected that it in itself is a carcinogen. It is also suspected that it may be contaminated with other carcinogens. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_laureth_sulfate In fact, most foreign toothpaste brands now carry the reminder/disclaimer: DO NOT SWALLOW.
Saccharin. Although the connection between saccharin and cancer has not been positively established, this is still under scrutiny. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccharin
Many other emulsifiers, preservatives, artificial colorants and flavouring.
About 20 years ago, we could not even go to the grocery. So we made stuff in our kitchen for our own use from their original recipes; from all natural ingredients.
Out toothpowder contains:
Baking Soda. Sodium bicarbonate neutralizes the acids in your mouth and absorbs all foul odours.
Calcium Powder. Chalk provides a gentle scrubbing action. It also preserves the calcium in your teeth.
Peppermint Oil. Distilled from fresh peppermint, this soothes your gums, the inside of your cheeks and your tongue.
Propolis. Acts against bacteria, viruses and fungi in your mouth. Many of our customers who have sensitive gums now use only our toothpaste. Many customers with bleeding gums and gingivitis have reported an alleviation of their condition.
Our toothpowder is almost basically the same as the powder your dentist uses to clean your teeth. But we have added other ingredients to make it better.

Question 46

Propolis Tooth Powder

Accepted Answer

Commercial toothpaste contains many chemicals:
SLS. Sodium laureth sulfate or sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLS or SLES), is a detergent and surfactant found in many personal care products (soaps, shampoos, toothpaste etc.). It is an inexpensive and very effective foamer. It is suspected that it in itself is a carcinogen. It is also suspected that it may be contaminated with other carcinogens. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_laureth_sulfate In fact, most foreign toothpaste brands now carry the reminder/disclaimer: DO NOT SWALLOW.
Saccharin. Although the connection between saccharin and cancer has not been positively established, this is still under scrutiny. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccharin
Many other emulsifiers, preservatives, artificial colorants and flavouring.
How to Use:
Wet your toothbrush.
Dip bristles in toothpowder.
Brush briskly.
Gargle well with a lot of water.
Enjoy hours of mouth freshness.
Best done 3x a day or after eating snacks or coffee.

Question 47

Royal Jelly

Accepted Answer

Royal Jelly is a substance of complex chemical structure produced by the young nurse bees as larva food.  Although it is not quite as well known as bee pollen, royal jelly exceeds pollen in its salutary effects. 
Young nurse bees make royal jelly; it is a secretion from glands on the tops of their heads.  For 2-3 days, royal jelly is the only food given to all young larvae in their maturation process, while for the queen larvae;
it is the specific food for their whole life period.  During the 3 days in which the worker bee larvae are fed on royal jelly, they reach the maximum development; their weight multiplies about 250 times.  The queen (fed only on royal jelly for her entire life) reaches maturity 5 days earlier than the worker bees; and, when she is fully grown, her weight is double that of the working bee. 
The span of the worker bee's life is about 35-40 days; while the queen lives 5-6 years and is extremely prolific.  She is fertilized once, and from that moment on can lay as many as three thousand eggs a day during the season.  As incredible as this may seem, she can lay that many eggs for five years.  Any creature that has that amount of energy and vitality has to be respected!
This rich concentrated food is not just useful for the bees.  It contains remarkable amounts of proteins, lipids, glucides, vitamins, hormones, enzymes, mineral substances, and specific vital factors that act as biocatalysts in cell regeneration processes within the human body.
Although some of the elements found in royal jelly are in microgram quantities, they still can act supremely with co-enzymes as catalysts or can act synergistically. That is, the elements' action combined is greater than the sum of their actions taken separately.
Royal jelly is rich in protein, vitamins B-1, B-2, B-6, C, E, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, inositol and folic acid.  In fact, it contains seventeen times as much pantothenic acid as that found in dry pollen.

Question 48

Royal Jelly Face Oil

Accepted Answer

Royal Jelly is the only substance in nature that contains 10-hydroxydecanoic acid. HD acid kills harmful organisms such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhosa. It also has a tumor and leukemia inhibiting function. HD acid increases blood hemoglobin.
We pack royal jelly fresh from the beehive and immediately freeze it to lock in its multitude of beneficial trace ingredients Ilog Maria Fresh Frozen Royal Jelly is not processed in any way to preserve its maximum potency.
We must remember that royal jelly was discovered before the age of refrigeration. The Chinese filled small ceramic jars with it and lowered these jars in chains into holes in the ground to stabilize keeping temperature.
If you cannot take it pure, you may mix it with a little honey or propolis. Honey or propolis are the best preservatives for it. We have also found that certain types of edible oils such as wheat germ oil, olive oil, palm oil, coconut oil, peanut oil and castor oil also preserve royal jelly naturally.
We discovered an ancient formula for eliminating scar tissue and mobilizing injured joints. It is composed of several edible oils. We mixed a little of our royal jelly in it for extra measure and we got our royal jelly face oil.
After some months of using our face oil for deep massaging my paralyzed right side, I was able to move it. After some more time, I was able to regain all of my right side and my signature using my formerly paralyzed right shoulder, arm and hand.
Rub in upward circular motions on your face immediately after a hot shower while your face is still moist. The effects on your complexion will be outstanding.

Question 49

Royal Jelly Sourness

Accepted Answer

Royal Jelly has a characteristic sour and astringent taste. Because it contains many amino acids, it is acid in reaction. It never spoils.
Royal Jelly is the only substance in nature that contains 10-hydroxydecanoic acid.
HD acid kills harmful organisms such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhosa. It also has a tumor and leukemia inhibiting function.
HD acid increases blood hemoglobin.
In time, the surface of royal jelly loses its off-white colour and becomes a little yellowish. This is normal.
We pack royal jelly fresh from the beehive and immediately freeze it to lock in its multitude of beneficial trace ingredients Ilog Maria Fresh Frozen Royal Jelly is not processed in any way to preserve its maximum potency.
We must remember that royal jelly was discovered before the age of refrigeration. The Chinese filled small ceramic jars with it and lowered these jars in chains into holes in the ground to stabilize keeping temperature.
For immediate use, put in chiller; consume within a month. For long term storage, put in freezer; it lasts for one to two years.
If you cannot take it pure, you may mix it with a little honey or propolis. Honey or propolis is the best preservative for it.

Question 50

Rush Orders

Accepted Answer

We always seek to give the speediest service, but there are still a few bottlenecks in our operations:
We are not always online.
My daughter handles the computer work; my wife handles the packing and shipping of each order. We tend to do this in the early mornings. My son helps me take care of the farm, the bees and farm infrastructure.
We shut down our computers during frequent afternoon thunderstorms. Moreover, during the rest of the day, we have to do numerous other chores on the farm.
Fedex/Air21 picks up packages only five times a week: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday mornings. They do not pick up Sundays, we are closed Mondays and holidays.
Moreover, we might not have all the items in your order in stock.
We are able to service orders fast, during the same day if:
The order is made before the early morning of a shipping day. Or, better yet, the day before.
We are able to confirm availability of items in your order immediately.
You are able to send proof of payment before our noon cut-off.
Admittedly, this takes some getting used to. But a lot of our long time customers do get their orders the day after they send proof of payment.
Many customers bring our products abroad. We ask them to order and send proof of payment way before their trip so we can ship with time to spare.

Question 51

Safe for Babies

Accepted Answer

Many mothers have asked, are your products safe for babies. This can only be answered by telling our story.
When I announced to the family that I would be a farmer, my grandmother said, "You will be poor." She was the wife of a tenant sugar cane farmer. She knew.
I proudly said, "I will be happy." So, I promptly became poor and happy.
My first miracle is that Violaine married me. Both of us promptly became poor and happy.
Since we had no electricity, the children came one after the other. All six of us were poor but happy.
Violaine would go to the grocery just to buy laundry soap and stuff we could flavour our vegetable dishes with.
We spent all our extra cash on books. I would write foreign companies to request product catalogues. I would write publishers to research "how to…" books; with a pencil on yellow legal paper. I would pay by telegraphic transfer. Relatives would graciously send these to us by post. I would go to town once a week for provisions and to harvest the contents of: P.O. Box #1.
I researched how to make tincture of propolis, throat spray, soaps, shampoo, toothpaste, ointment, liniment, mosquito repellent and many other items we needed for our growing family. When I had assembled a prototype formulation, I left it with Violaine. In her typical fashion, she would just glance at it. Whenever she got dead-ended, we would pray. When the answers came, she would continue.
After a week, a month or, in some cases years; she would ask us to try something she was working on.
We decided to do things the old fashioned way in our kitchen; without chemicals, using simple food ingredients: edible oils, home made vinegar, baking soda and the like. We used what we made on ourselves.
After much home use, prayer and many years, we slowly perfected our formulations. Because we were beekeepers, we mixed a lot of our harvests from our beehives with our products. The honey, pollen, beeswax, propolis and royal jelly we harvested added their magic to our already good products. This was our best move. Our products morphed from good to "fantastic".
If it was your birthday, anniversary or Christmas, maybe we would give you a present, out of our cupboard, wrapped in old newspapers maybe wrapped with a nice ribbon.
Even if this was the pre-Internet and pre-blog age, people started to look for our home-made stuff. They came all the way here, even when our road was very muddy and sometimes flooded.
We converted our only spare 4-square meter room into our first store. We even painted the inside, when the rest of the house was unpainted. Maybe every two weeks, Violaine would open our tiny room for visitors.
The rest, so they say, is history.
To date, we do not advertise. Due to our limited production, we have no other outlets, save our website.
We still make all our products from natural ingredients, most of which we harvest from our bees and our farm. We source locally, as much as possible. My wife, Violaine, makes everything from scratch in small bathes in her home lab.
We use all our products, sampling every batch.
To date, we have found no one who is allergic to our products.
But, it pays to be prudent; please try our products in small doses or amounts at first and increase to the recommended dosage once beneficial reactions are felt.
My wife had four babies. She took our products while she was pregnant. She breastfed all of them while continuously taking our products. She has used all of our products on our children while they were growing. All of us continually use all of our products daily.
Our children's auto-immune systems greatly benefited from this. The last time they were in the hospital was when they were born.

Question 52

Sample Routine for General Health

Accepted Answer

All the products of the beehive co-exist inside the beehive at 98 degrees Fahrenheit. Anyone with generally good health may take them simultaneously.
You will have to exercise a little bit of prudence, wise judgement and body sensitivity. Natural products have different reactions for different body types. What may be good for one person may not be effective for another.
It will be wise to take each product sparingly at first, observing and sensing your body reaction to each particular product. Take each product by itself for a couple of days, then take them in combination, sparingly again. Until you build up to our recommended dosages. You may then combine according to your specific body type.
Note that with natural products, it is usage, not dosage that is important. We recommend dosages so as not to waste our products. We have not experienced over dosage. Our children consume our products at will.

* Our recommended time is before breakfast. This is when stomach acids are not yet active and do not degrade bee products. This takes some getting used to.Please read all our brochures carefully.

Question 53

Sharing their Harvest

Accepted Answer

The honeybee is unique. The "foods" it collects for its own use come from flowers, bark, buds of plants. The substances it secretes are more unique in that nowhere else in nature can they be found.
Honeybees forage in about 3,500 hectares around our bee farms. They are able to choose and collect the freshest and best "foods" each day.
Imagine being able to share in their harvest.

Question 54

Shipping

Accepted Answer

We ship to all points serviced by FedEx/Air21 in the Philippines. We usually ship Monday to Friday after we receive proofs of payment.
Shipping to all points in the Philippines usually takes 1-5 working days. In some locations, it takes up to 10-15 working days.
We answer emails Tuesday morning to Friday mornings. If we have more time, we answer in between.
If we do not answer your email right away, we may be busy attending to the many things we have to do on the farm.
We have one staff for shipping orders and my wife, Violaine, oversees packing and each FedEx pickup. We do this aside from our many other chores here on the farm.
If you are able to send us proof of payment on time (before our noon cut off), this will help you get your package faster. 
 
Please note that once your package has left the farm, your package is out of our humble hands already. We may give you the tracking no. but for faster tracking, a direct call to our courier's hotline is the best way to track your items.

Question 55

Shipping Destinations

Accepted Answer

We ship to all points in the Philippines serviced by FedEx/Air21.
We do not ship Internationally yet.

Question 56

Skin Products

Accepted Answer

For your face, we recommend:
Royal Jelly Cleanser Moisturizer. To remove makeup.
Honey Propolis Face Scrub. For deep cleansing of your face and getting rid of whiteheads, blackheads and acne.
Honey Glycerin Face Soap. Extra mild for washing your face.
Royal Jelly Face Oil. For dry skin conditions or as an occasional facial toner.
Lip Balm. To ease dry and cracked lips.
Beeswax Propolis Ointment. For rashes, itches, insect bites, allergies and the like.
For your body:
Any of our body soaps. We produce about 14 other opaque soaps. You may download our soap brochure from our website. Download Soap Brochure
Honey Propolis Feminine Wash. We add extra doses of propolis to our gentlest face soap formula.
Honey Propolis Liquid Soap. For your face and hands, an even gentler soap than our face soap. Perfect for travelling.
Royal Jelly Honeymilk Lotion. Almost the same formulation as our cleanser moisturizer but with a lighter base. Moisturizing.
Bath Salts. For scrubbing off rough and dead skin from elbows, knees and feet. Also for soaking tired feet or mineralizing your bathtub water.

Question 57

Soaps

Accepted Answer

We use soap recipes that are more than a hundred years old. In some cases, more than two hundred years old.
We have substituted natural ingredients for ancient ingredients that are no longer available. Example: For Sperm Whale oil, which is a soap hardener, we substitute a blend of olive oil and beeswax.
We make cold process soaps, which are mostly opaque. Our opaque soaps are colour coded. We have a soap brochure, for easy reference.
We make hot process soaps. These are our honey glycerine soaps. They are our very best soaps.
We do not wrap our regular sized opaque soaps. This allows them to breathe and cure. We only wrap our honey glycerine soaps and our mini soaps (that have breathed and cured already).

Question 58

"Stingless" Citronella Mosquito Repellent"

Accepted Answer

We formulated our "Stingless" Mosquito repellent because a lot of customers were looking for a safe natural mosquito repellent that did not use the chemicals commonly used in commercial mosquito repellents.
The formulation of our natural mosquito repellent was accelerated by the rampant spread of dengue.
It took us a long time to develop our "Stingless" mosquito repellent. We tested thoroughly on humans and animals.
Our "Stingless" mosquito repellent is formulated with all natural ingredients: citronella oil, lemongrass oil, lemon oil, herb oil and edible carrier oils. It is safe.
For best results:
Dab a few drops on clothing.
Or, if skin is exposed, dab a drop or two on the skin.
Watch for any allergic reaction, although this is rare.
Re-aply after four to six hours.
We have been using our mosquito repellent for about ten years. Schools like Assumption, Philippine Montessori and Temple Hill use it also.
We use edible oils as carrier oils. They turn a little rancid after 3 months but our "Stingless" mosquito repellent will still remain effective.

Question 59

Store Hours and Stock

Accepted Answer

We are open 6 days a week from 800 am to 500 pm, Tuesdays to Sundays.
We are closed Mondays and some holidays. We take time out to rest, attend to household concerns and do some errands on Mondays.
We usually announce when we will be closed in the scrolling left hand News section of our website.
 
Our stock of products is usually depleted during weekends. It takes Mrs. Magsaysay, a couple of days to completely re-stock our farm store.
Our store is fully usually stocked by Friday. First come, first served.
Same Wholesale Prices.
Customers who walk-in or drive all the way to our farm store have first priority of supply and can avail of wholesale prices here. No minimum orders are required to avail of wholesale prices.
 
Retail Prices.
Customers who cannot come to our farm store can order through our website. We can no longer efficiently & effectively handle orders through our phone that is why we have upgraded our website to handle all your orders. You will be charged retail website prices + shipping. These prices are just 10% higher, just enough to recover all the costs of upgrading / maintaining / hosting the website, (contracting payment facilities) and upgrading our shipping / handling operations.
 
Orders for Pick Up.
You may use our shopping cart to make your order which you will pick-up. Just deduct 10% to get the total amount and disregard shipping fees. Then call us up after we confirm your order to find out when it can be picked up.
Custom & Special Orders. We can work with you regarding custom orders. Please email us @ info@ilogmaria.com
 
Discounts.
We have been trying to maintain our low prices for about twenty years. In the face of ever-rising prices of raw materials, supplies, parts, equipment, fuel, all kinds of fees, duties and taxes, we are under tremendous pressure to increase our prices. And we do, sometimes and from time to time - P5 here, P10 there - mostly to cover increases in packaging and raw material costs. That's all. Moreover, our products are entirely hand made. They do not benefit from the economies of scale of mass production. Our production costs do not go down when product volumes go up. We are only able to maintain our low prices because we do not pay rent, we live where we work, we do not charge you depreciation or any of the normal costs of doing business, we have no inventory, we do not advertise, we do not have any regular marketing, sales, delivery and credit and collection staff, we also produce many of the active and base ingredients of our products here by ourselves, we have minimal in-store staff (in fact, our entire family helps in our store - in turns - whenever any of us is free), and lastly because we ourselves abhor high prices. For these reasons, we cannot and do not give discounts.
 
Overseas Orders.
After 9/11, it has become difficult to use couriers such as Fedex for overseas shipments. The many times we have tried, our customers were saddled with so much red tape, some of them decided to abandon their packages and reorder thru friends coming home to the Philippines. You may ask a friend or relative in the Philippines, who plans to travel, to order from our website and bring our products to wherever you are. Another option is to ask someone here in the Philippines to order from our website and use the Express Mail Service of the Phil. Post Office. This is slower but incurs less red tape. We do not ship outside the Philippines yet.

FAQ

Acne

Activation or Log-In Problems

Aromatherapy oils

Ask Someone else to order

Bazaars, Fairs, and Expos"

Bee Pollen

Bee Seminars

Bee Venom

Beeswax

Beeswax and Aromatherapy oils

Beeswax clay

Beeswax Wood Polish

Botulism and Honey

Changing or Adding to your order

Custom Order

Dealers and Dealership

Farm Store

Gcash payment from a Globe Center

Getting Here by Commuting

Getting Here from Eastern Batangas

Getting Here from Sta. Rosa

Getting Here from Western Batangas

Getting Here thru Coastal Road-Aguinaldo Highway

Getting Here thru SLEX

Giveaways

Honey

Honey and Diabetes

Honey Cider Vinegar

Honey Granulation

Honey Propolis Shampoo

Honey Propolis Throat Spray

Honey Rationing

How Can I Buy

Interviews

No Media Features

Ordering From Abroad

Outlets

Overweight Package

Propolis

Propolis

Propolis and Arthritis-Gout

Propolis and Cancer

Propolis Ointment

Propolis Shelf Life

Propolis Tooth Powder

Propolis Tooth Powder

Royal Jelly

Royal Jelly Face Oil

Royal Jelly Sourness

Rush Orders

Safe for Babies

Sample Routine for General Health

Sharing their Harvest

Shipping

Shipping Destinations

Skin Products

Soaps

"Stingless" Citronella Mosquito Repellent"

Store Hours and Stock