At Nate’s, honey purity and taste are our top priority – and we couldn’t do it without the incredible help of our beekeepers, including Matt Halbgewachs with Sweet River Honey. After a decades-long business relationship and friendship with Matt, Nate and the Nature Nate’s team are excited to share Sweet River Honey has joined Nate’s in the Sweet Harvest Foods Holdings family.
From the beginning, Matt has put his heart and soul into the care of his honeybees. He founded Sweet River Honey in 2015, but the beekeeping legacy of the Halbgewachs family has a long history that dates back centuries. Matt has been a trustworthy partner who is committed to producing pure honey with the same level of care and passion that our brand is known for. He also shares our hive-to-table philosophy and mission to help more people discover the way bees intend honey to be – 100% pure, raw & unfiltered.
Adding Sweet River Honey to our family of companies is a natural extension of our vision to be the most trusted honey company in the country – and we are proud to continue working together to support sustainable beekeeping practices and strict testing standards to provide the highest-quality honey to families. Welcome to the family, Sweet River Honey!
Sweet Harvest Foods Holdings (SHFH), the leader in the U.S. natural sweetener industry, has acquired Sweet River Honey, a leading beekeeping business based in Texas. Sweet River Honey will add hives and beekeeping experience to the SHFH portfolio and enable SHFH to further accomplish its vision of being the world’s most trusted natural sweetener company.
Sweet River Honey was founded by Matt Halbgewachs in 2015, but the beekeeping legacy of the Halbgewachs family has a long history that dates back centuries. Sweet River Honey was established with a passion for supporting sustainable beekeeping and providing consumers with high-quality honey. Together, SHFH and Sweet River Honey will expand its operations and enable every home in the U.S. to enjoy pure honey.
“Sweet Harvest Foods Holdings is deeply committed to growing the natural sweetener market with the highest-quality honey,” said Ken Stickevers, CEO of Sweet Harvest Foods Holdings. “By adding Sweet River Honey to our portfolio of companies, we can continue to build trust with customers by advancing best-in-class beekeeping practices and increasing transparency in the honey market.”
“Sweet River Honey provides pure honey with a hive-to-table philosophy,” said Matt Halbgewachs, founder of Sweet River Honey. “By combining our passion for pure honey and sustainable beekeeping with the depth of expertise and resources of Sweet Harvest Foods Holdings, we can be part of a team that helps more people discover the way bees intend honey to be – 100% pure, raw & unfiltered.”
In January 2022, SHFH merged Sweet Harvest Foods, a global natural sweeteners platform and one of the largest honey packers in North America, and Nature Nate’s Honey Co. (Nate’s), the number-one branded honey company in the U.S. and producer of 100% pure, raw and unfiltered honey. Since their merger, Sweet Harvest Foods and Nate’s have delivered on their promise of providing customers with the highest-quality, purest honey by adhering to strict testing standards.
“The purchase of Sweet River Honey is the result of a decades-long partnership and friendship with Matt Halbgewachs,” said Nathan Sheets, founder and CEO of Nate’s. “Matt has put his heart and soul into the care of his honeybees. He has been a trustworthy partner who is not only committed to producing pure honey with the same level of care and passion that our brand is known for but also shares a vision for bringing the goodness of pure honey to more families across the country. Adding Sweet River Honey to the team is a natural extension of our mission to become the most trusted honey company in the country.”
About Sweet Harvest Foods
Serving some of the best-known manufacturers, distributors and retailers in the food industry, Sweet Harvest Foods is one of the country’s largest packers of 100% pure all-natural honey. As a worldwide leader in the sourcing and distribution of natural sweeteners, Sweet Harvest Foods provides consistent, verifiable quality and operational flexibility with facilities in Minnesota, California and Michigan. For more information, visit www.sweetharvestfoods.com.
About Sweet River Honey
Sweet River Honey was founded with a centuries’ long heritage of beekeeping and a passion for producing high-quality honey. Based in Driftwood, Texas, it has earned a reputation for sustainable beekeeping practices and trusted beekeeping relationships with communities from South Texas to California to North Dakota. With a commitment to a hive-to-table philosophy, Sweet River Honey prides itself in bringing consumers 100% pure, raw and unfiltered honey that comes directly from the hive, nothing added and nothing taken away. For more information, visit https://www.sweetriverhoney.com.
