When honey is processed it undergoes a filtering process where tiny particles, such as small as bits of pollen, are removed. Filtering honey is not the same as straining it – which removes parts of bees and other larger pieces of debris from the honey while still retaining the pollen and other beneficial elements.
Honey is also often heated prior to the filtration process, so that it becomes more liquid and is easier to process, but this means that the honey can no longer be called ‘raw’. Unfiltered honey is the closest you can get to honey in its natural state (as it would be if you were taking it directly from the hive) and preserves all of its properties. Since there are no regulations about how honey is labelled, try to find small producers that are transparent about how they process their honey to ensure it is unfiltered.