The Ettrick honey thief is still on the loose but police are following a couple of lines of enquiry.

Honey by Wrights owner Michael Wright said his roadside stall gets targeted about once every three to four months, but usually they catch the culprits by posting the video on social media.

Unfortunately the balaclava-clad thief who stole 100kg worth of honey from the stall last week was driving a stolen vehicle, so the investigation was taking longer.

“He’s probably the only person we won’t see any money from,” Michael said.

Usually within half an hour of the security camera footage being posted on Facebook, Michael will receive a tip off from a member of the public about who it is - from the vehicle and licence plate.

He refuses to take down the video until they pay up, and it works in 99% of situations because they don’t like being named and shamed and the consequences - particularly if they are in business themselves.

Michael said one guy who stole $350 worth of honey rang up crying saying he was on a benefit and had stolen the honey for cancer patients.

He came up with a deal to pay him back a minimal amount out of his income every week. 

The infamous Ettrick honey stall that made national news last week after a thief made away with about $1600 worth of product. Image: supplied

Michael’s even chased honey thieves down the road, but then realised it’s just not worth it. So he invested $5000 in security cameras instead, and it has paid off in more ways than one.

“It’s been great for online sales,” he said, and for those worried about the stall closing, there is no chance of that happening anytime soon.

“Truck drivers are some of our best clients, often travelling through at 3am. They say ‘please don’t shut your honey stall.’ Our stall does so incredibly well,” he said.

The unmanned honey stall was open 24/7 and operated on an honesty system, with customers able to pay with cash or use an eftpos machine themselves.

Produced in the high country Onslow area 2000 feet above sea level, Wrights Honey has been in business for the past 15 years, and has built up from 180 hives to 1500.

Michael said while it has been a tough season due to the colder weather, prices of honey per kilogram have recovered from the $3 they were getting last season, back to $8/kg.

This season he expects to produce about 15kg per hive, but in a good year he would be getting between 30 to 60kg per hive.

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