HONEY may just seem like something sweet to put on your cereal but one Dartford beekeeper knows how useful it can be in times of war.

Bill Mundy was captured by the Japanese in February 1942 and spent three-and-a-half years as an Allied prisoner of war in horrendous conditions.

The 91-year-old only left Britain in December 1941 but ended up in Singapore’s notorious Changi jail after the Japanese overran Malaya and captured thousands of British forces.

Crippled by malnutrition, Mr Mundy nevertheless managed to find time for his favourite hobby when he and a Dutch fellow prisoner captured a swarm of bees which were kept in a box in the officers’ quarters.

The honey he produced was sent to the prison hospital every two weeks to help fight infection by absorbing moisture and stopping bacteria from spreading in the wounds of fellow prison inmates.

Mr Mundy told News Shopper: "I almost lost the sight in both eyes through lack of nutrition and I had two tropical ulcers.

"When I got to Singapore they put me on grass soup for the vitamin B and when I got back to Britain I had to have Marmite every night for the same reason."

"I used to give lectures to other prisoners on beekeeping and two of them wrote to me after we were freed and they had gone back to Australia and they said they were going to start beekeeping as a result of my lectures."

News Shopper: The Dartford Beekeepers

Left to right: Bill Mundy, Barry Adams and Dartford MP Gareth Johnson (image by Lisa Erlandsen). 

When he got back to the UK he resumed his membership of Dartford Beekeepers with which he has been involved for more than 76 years since joining in September 1936.

The group’s apiary is on King Edward Avenue - just a stone’s throw from Mr Mundy’s home - where he and friend Barry Adams, 69, now put their honey to more tasty uses.

Mr Mundy said: "Mead is the best thing we make.

"It’s a nice sweet drink and it’s about 17.5 per cent."

The Dartford Beekeepers also make honey moisturising cream, body butter, soap and lip balm.

Mr Mundy and Mr Adams joined 14 other Kent food and drink producers at the Taste of Kent event on May 15 with the county's MPs and around 1,000 parliamentary foodies.

Dartford MP Gareth Johnson said: "In Kent we don’t show off all the county has to offer as much as we should.

"There is so much range from one of the most diverse counties in the country.

"I was particularly pleased to meet with the Dartford Beekeepers and it was wonderful to see the positive reaction of all the guests to their honey."

Other delicacies included strawberries from Wimbledon suppliers Hugh Lowe Farms, Sittingbourne butchers SW Doughty and Simply Ice Cream from Ashford.

Bill Mundy still gives lectures on beekeeping with his next 14 session course starting in November. Visit dartfordbeekeepers.com