Beekeeping is an Example

NEWS PROVIDED BY

CGTN (Chinese Global Television Network)

BEIJING /PRNewswire/ — Liu Jinliang, a second-generation beekeeper in Miyun District, the northeastern suburb of Beijing, practices multi-box beekeeping. He is China’s first beekeeper to successfully utilize the technique, introduced by the district government in 2016.

It took the young bee farmer five years to fully implement the new technique, and now it is helping his family and local beekeepers live a “sweet” life.

Spurred on by Liu and the local government, around 30 percent of bee farmers in Miyun have now adopted the new technique, greatly boosting the output and quality of their honey. Over 360 low-income farmers in Miyun have shaken off poverty since joining the beekeeping project.

“Through my example, I can motivate people around me. And those people can empower other people around them as well. In this way, we can achieve common prosperity,” Liu told CGTN.

The beekeeping industry in Miyun generated around 130 million yuan ($18.91 million) in revenue in 2020, an increase of 19.3 percent over 2019. Encouraged by what has been achieved in Miyun, more and more bee farmers across China have turned to the multi-box beekeeping technique to raise their honey output while improving quality.

Chinese President Xi Jinping once quoted an ancient Chinese proverb, “The key to running a country is to first enrich the people,” to explain why the country is striving for common prosperity. Liu’s story gives a glimpse of China’s exploration of the paths to achieve that goal.

People-centered philosophy

The saying, which comes from Shiji, or Records of the Grand Historian, a monumental history book of ancient China compiled about 2,000 years ago, sets forth the traditional Chinese philosophy of governance: the common people are considered the foundation of a country, and only when the people prosper can the country prosper.

This is a classic piece of Chinese wisdom, and it has become part of the governance philosophy of the Chinese government in modern times.

When quoting the saying at a gathering to mark China’s poverty alleviation accomplishments and honor model poverty fighters, President Xi pledged the country would adhere to the people-centered development philosophy and unswervingly follow the path of common prosperity.

“We have always remained committed to standing on the side of the people and consistently stressed that eradicating poverty, improving people’s lives, and achieving common prosperity represent the essential requirements of socialism,” said Xi.

Behind Liu’s success is the Miyun district government. It has helped local beekeepers learn advanced apiculture techniques and provided them with high-quality queen bees at no charge.

To better help beekeepers, the district government has also provided financial aid to support about 30 projects in the sector, with an investment of about 100 million yuan, to help make commercial beekeeping standardized and industrialized.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2023-06-05/Why-does-China-stick-to-the-path-of-common-prosperity–1kob98IUhB6/index.html

https://youtu.be/Lom4HnpR2xI

Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lom4HnpR2xI

SOURCE CGTN

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: CGTN: Why does China stick to the path of common prosperity? (prnewswire.com)

Todd Harmer

Without bees, there is no food, so keeping hives healthy is of utmost importance. That job is becoming more difficult thanks to an outbreak of disease and the effects of climate change.

That’s where special apiary inspectors come in, who check on the health of keepers’ bees to help prevent the spread of honeybee diseases and pests.

Marie Cairns, a bee keeper who runs a small apiary in the Cowichan Valley, had her hives checked on Friday by Tara Galpin, an apiary inspector for South Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.

“First of all, it was all about the pollination, but then the more you learn about bees the more fascinating they are,” Cairns said.

Cairns has been bee keeping in the valley for nine years. She got her inspection for free, as any bee keeper can, so she can sell some of her hive.

“You have bees and you want your own bees to stay healthy, so you want their bees to be healthy because they fly and bring back disease if you don’t or mites or anything else,” she said.

Galpin is looking for a few different diseases and pests. One that comes up often is the varroa mite, a parasitic mite that feeds on honey bees and causes a disease called varroosis.

“They feed out the fat body of the bee, so it’s like if we had the size of a rat on our human body feeding on our liver,” Galpin explained.

Unfortunately, Cairns’ bees had too many mites. “My first time failing,” she said.

But this experienced bee keeper is unfazed, and will work with the inspector to apply the appropriate treatment.

Galpin says unpredictable spring weather due to climate change—that have been cooler and damper—is helping to spread fungal disease and doesn’t allow bees to forage for food when they need it most.

Keeping bees in good shape is important, as along with other native pollinators they play a key role in sustaining B.C.’s food system, and contribute an estimated $250 million to the province’s economy.

The inspector says losses this year in bee colonies is between 30 to 40 per cent—climate change and the spread of disease keeping the pressure on bees and their keepers.

“More than anything, we need diversity of plants for our bees to forage from and diversity in our food landscapes,” she said.

Importing bees plays a major role in maintaining the bee population across Canada, and combined with the work of inspectors like Galpin, they’re ensuring bees keep food on our table.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Disease and climate change put pressure on bees and their keepers: apiary inspector | CTV News

Irelands Minister Hackett launches the National Apiculture Programme 2023 – 2027

From Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The Minister of State in the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett, today launched the National Apiculture Programme supporting the Beekeeper Sector in Ireland.

Launching the Programme the Minister said:

“I am delighted to announce the introduction of the new National Apiculture Programme which will run until the end of 2027. This Programme, which supports research into production standards, demonstrates my department’s continued support to the beekeeping sector in Ireland.”

Support for beekeeping is provided through National Apiculture Programmes which aim through approved applied research projects to improve the general conditions for the production of honey and other apiculture products in the EU. Researchers are invited to submit proposals for the new National Apiculture Programme which will run until 31 December 2027.

The aims of the programme are to:

• provide technical assistance to beekeepers
• combat beehive invaders and diseases, particularly varroasis
• co-operate with specialist bodies for the implementation of applied research programmes in the field of beekeeping and apiculture products

All suitable bodies that can demonstrate the necessary research capabilities, including Universities, Institutes of Technology and Teagasc, are eligible to submit proposals. Projects that involve collaboration between institutions and/or involve the development of critical mass are encouraged.

The deadline for receipt of applications for this call is Friday 30 June 2023. Queries relating to the National Apiculture Programme 2023-2027 can be emailed to beekeeping@agriculture.gov.i

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: gov.ie – Minister Hackett launches the National Apiculture Programme 2023 – 2027 (www.gov.ie)

by Scarlett Howard, Alexander Mikheyev, Emily Remnant, Simon Tierney and Théotime Colin, The Conversation

Credit: Théotime Colin, Author provided Varroa mites—notorious honey bee parasites—have recently reached Australian shores, detected at the Port of Newcastle in New South Wales last year. If they establish here, there would be significant implications for agricultural food security, as honey bees are heavily relied on for the pollination of many crops.

However, while Australia is the last continent to be invaded by the mite, it has an opportunity to be the first to eradicate it.

Varroa destructor is a small mite that attaches to bees and eats their “fat body.” The fat bodies of honey bees are the insect equivalent of a liver. Varroa weakens bees, reduces their lifespan and increases the spread of deadly viruses.

Scientists need to be ready: this might be Australia’s best chance to collect important data on the spread and evolution of this parasite. Our new paper published today in Biology Letters outlines what questions scientists need to ask and what data they need to collect if Varroa spreads in Australia.

Such data could help us understand how parasites evolve, why Varroa are so damaging for honey bees, and how Varroa mites impact other insects and the environment.

Will Varroa establish in Australia?

Australia is in close proximity to countries that have the mite, including New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Indonesia.

This probably explains why invasive honey bee swarms are frequently intercepted at our ports, many of these carrying Varroa. Australia currently bans importation of honey bee colonies due to the biosecurity risk, so these interceptions are typically due to stowaway swarms taking up residence in shipping containers.

Previous invasions of Varroa have been successfully eradicated before establishing, but this time Varroa circumvented the biosecurity surveillance near Newcastle and spread locally.

The New South Wales Department of Primary Industries has been contact-tracing and culling hives in contaminated areas, and the spread has been slow so far. Australia has large populations of feral honey bees, which could potentially act as a reservoir for Varroa and are much harder to trace and control, so the department is tackling this with a wild honey bee baiting program.

What threats does Varroa pose?

Varroa mites are a threat to food security. Although Australia has an abundance of food and exports it to other nations, the price of food is likely to increase if Varroa escapes confinement.

Currently, pollination of crops in eradication zones such as berries in Coffs Harbor is at risk due to the removal of all honey bees in the region, which may lead to short-term increases in food costs.

Australia currently relies on pollination by commercial honey bees (yellow), supplemented by feral honey bees (brown), though we have many native bee species like stingless bees and blue banded bees that are also being used in crop pollination. Credit: Boris Yagound, adapted from Chapman et al. 2023, CC BY

However, establishment and spread of Varroa will lead to lower pollination and lower crop production across the country, which will raise the price of most fruit and vegetables that depend on bee pollination.

This could worsen the food affordability crises caused by the current inflation, affecting the ability of low income households to buy nutritious and fresh produce. Almond pollination has already noted a deficit of 80,000 hives in the last season.

Many of the honey bee colonies that pollinate our crops are thought to be feral, living in tree hollows or nest-boxes designed for native animals. These feral bees are not managed by beekeepers and so won’t be saved by the use of Varroa treatments, meaning they will most likely disappear.

To read the complete article go to; Opinion: Australia is in a unique position to eliminate the bee-killing Varroa mite. Here’s what happens if we don’t (phys.org)

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Opinion: Australia is in a unique position to eliminate the bee-killing Varroa mite. Here’s what happens if we don’t (phys.org)

Jamie Morton

Varroa mites are responsible for the loss of tens of thousands of hives in New Zealand each year, killing countless bees like this one. Photo / Supplied

A destructive mite plaguing our beekeeping industry may have been building up home-grown resistance to a widely used chemical pesticide, a new study suggests.

Flumethrin has long been a key tool for controlling varroa, but when researchers recently assessed its mite-killing performance at one apiary, they found concentrations of it needed to be 13 times higher than two decades ago.

They say the findings, just released ahead of peer review, warrant further investigation to see if miticide resistance is a wider, hidden problem for the $5 billion industry.

Since being first detected back in 2000, the varroa destructor mite has become the sector’s biggest headache, each year accounting for nearly half of colony losses and costing more than $1 million in mitigation efforts and lost honey production.

The new study, led by PhD student Rose McGruddy and co-authored by Lester, focused on two key chemical pesticides used for varroa control.

They were flumethrin and amitraz – estimated to be used by 78 and 85 per cent of commercial beekeepers respectively.

Typically, they applied one product in early spring, and another in late summer or early autumn.

“Mite resistance to flumethrin may help explain why the mite problem is getting worse,” Victoria University ecologist Professor Phil Lester says. Photo / Supplied

“We’ve heard differing reports of the effectiveness of chemical pesticides, especially flumethrin,” Lester said.

“The nationwide survey and Rose’s data suggest most beekeepers are satisfied with it.

“But there are others who think this product is much less effective than it used to be – some even stating it has failed to control varroa entirely.”

Unlike in the past, some beekeepers were now using more than two applications of it, he said.

In the study, the researchers drew on years of survey data, along with their own laboratory tests of pesticides.

“The key result was that we found that the concentration of flumethrin needed to kill mites was 13-times higher than it was in 2005,” Lester said.

“This result indicates that mites appear to have and are developing resistance to this chemical.”

There was no evidence of any resistance to amitraz, which is another key pesticide for mite control, as it appeared to be effective, he said.

The study team stressed this result didn’t mean that commercial products containing flumethrin didn’t work – and they might still be useful for mite control for many beekeepers.

“We’d also note that the mites we used for this work were from the Wellington region and we can’t be sure that selection for resistance has occurred everywhere equally,” he said.

“But the big implication is that resistance does seem to have developed. It could explain the limited success of control using flumethrin reported to us by beekeepers.

“Mite resistance to flumethrin may help explain why the mite problem is getting worse.”

While varroa resistance to the chemical had been observed around the world, the study team didn’t find any of the same genetic markers of resistance identified in overseas studies.

“The New Zealand resistance development seems to be via a different pathway for the New Zealand population of mites,” Lester said.

The study raised several questions that urgently needed answering: namely, whether such “home-grown” was occurring more widely and, if so, how.

More broadly, Lester felt new products were needed for mite control, with novel modes of action – such as new “gene-silencing” approaches his own group was researching.

“We need to carefully manage resistance, by ensuring good integrated pest management procedures, which include alternating control methods,” he said.

“New methods are desperately needed.”

The industry’s peak body, Apiculture New Zealand, also said the study’s findings needed to be interpreted with caution.

“Because there has been growing discussion that resistance to treatments may be an issue in New Zealand, this research is of interest,” it told the Herald in a statement.

“However, although these lab concentrations differ to what was detected in 2003, they remain lower than what was detected in international apiaries with resistant varroa.

“Additionally, we note that the varroa tested in this research was collected from one apiary so it may not represent all regions.”

The group said this needed to be fully tested before any conclusions could be made regarding chemical resistance.

“As outlined by the researchers and by ApiNZ and our experts, the key to varroa management is ensuring the control methods are conducted as per label and rotated between treatment groups,” it said.

“Untreated colonies die. This does not change.”

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Has the destructive varroa been building ‘home-grown’ pesticide resistance in NZ? – NZ Herald

Source: Xinhua

Editor: huaxia

A student of Master of Entomology shows a beehive frame at a research farm in the Chakwal district of Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province on April 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal)

As ironclad brothers, the Chinese government is happy to share the advanced technology of beekeeping and honey-processing with Pakistani people to promote the beekeeping industry and improve people’s livelihood, said Pang Chunxue, charge d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan.

by Misbah Saba Malik

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan has a huge potential in honey production but due to multiple factors local beekeepers are facing challenges that can be overcome by following the Chinese style of bee-keeping, experts said.

Speaking at the China-Pakistan Apiculture Forum on Thursday, Pakistani and Chinese experts said the Pak-China apiculture cooperation is a way forward toward a successful honey production sector of Pakistan.

Nadia Rehman, a member of food security and climate change of Pakistan’s Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, told the webinar that such cooperation will lead to knowledge sharing, research collaboration and technology transfer, and result in enhanced honey yield in the South Asian country.

She added that 390,000 people in Pakistan are involved in beekeeping and produce over 4,000 tons of honey annually, and if they adopt modern technologies, honey production can surge to 70,000 tons a year and create about 87,000 green jobs.

Speaking at the event, Muhammad Naeem, vice chancellor of Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University in Rawalpindi, said many people from rural areas of Pakistan are associated with beekeeping which becomes a profitable business and a great source of livelihood.

The annual yield per colony was 30 to 35 kg, but recently due to climate change effects it decreased to 10 to 12 kg, posing a serious challenge for beekeepers to continue the business, he said.

Naeem added that to help Pakistani beekeepers overcome the challenge, his university is helping them not only to increase the yield but also find alternative ways to earn money, by introducing Chinese technology.

Now a training course on beekeeping and honey processing technology for Pakistan is being held in which 39 participants from different universities, research institutes, beekeeping associations, honey traders, and beekeepers are getting the most advanced knowledge of beekeeping from Chinese professors, Naeem said.

“As China is playing a leading role in the research and development of beekeeping in the world, the knowledge sharing by Chinese experts regarding modern beekeeping techniques can be very useful for Pakistani beekeepers and the scientific community,” he added.

A student of Master of Entomology extracts royal jelly from a Chinese-styled hive at a research farm in the Chakwal district of Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province on April 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal)

Pang Chunxue, charge d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan, told the webinar that agriculture is one of pillar industries of Pakistan and a key area for bilateral cooperation between China and Pakistan.

“Agricultural cooperation is crucial to the high-quality development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. China is committed to supporting Pakistan in revitalizing its agriculture, livestock, dairy, fisheries and food processing sectors to attain sustainable growth and meet the challenge of poverty alleviation,” she added.

The honey produced in Pakistan enjoys a good reputation for its unique taste and high quality for a long time, but has been suffering from problems of low production, low price and small scale, she said.

Pang added that China has a history of beekeeping for more than 2,000 years and is one of the earliest countries in the world to raise bees. Nowadays the beekeeping industry in China has developed rapidly and exports of related products rank top in the world.

“As ironclad brothers, the Chinese government is happy to share the advanced technology of beekeeping and honey-processing with Pakistani people to promote the beekeeping industry and improve people’s livelihood,” she said.

President of the Apicultural Science Association of China Wu Jie said that the association is willing to work with beekeeping research institutes and universities in Pakistan to strengthen cooperation, and promote common development and prosperity of the beekeeping industry in China and Pakistan.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Pakistani apiculture sector to thrive with Chinese know-how-Xinhua (news.cn)

The Princess keeps bees at Anmer Hall, on the Sandringham estate, where each batch of honey has its own distinct flavour

By Patrick Sawer,

The Princess of Wales is photographed wearing a bee suit.

An invitation to one of the garden parties at Buckingham Palace has always been regarded as quite the hot ticket.

But the invite will now be all the sweeter, following revelations that the honey being served to guests as part of the refreshments may well have been produced by royal hands.

To mark World Bee Day on Saturday May 20 and promote the importance of bees to the biodiversity of the planet, the palace released a photograph of the Princess of Wales busy tending to her hives in Norfolk.

The Princess of Wales keeps bees at Anmer Hall, on the Sandringham estate, where each batch of honey has its own distinct flavour depending on where the beehives are situated at time of collection, including lime from the trees which line the roads, or heather and lavender.

She brought a jar of the honey from the hives for schoolchildren to try on a visit to the Natural History Museum’s new biodiversity hub in June 2021.

The firm’s founders Brian and Pat Sherriff had previously designed military uniforms, but turned to making beekeeping equipment after setting up South Cornwall Honey Farm in the mid-1960s, which now has 400 colonies.

World Bee Day aims to raise awareness of the importance of bees, the threats they face and their contribution to sustainable development.

Apiary enthusiasm runs in the family

The Princess of Wales is not the only royal happy to don a beekeeper’s jacket and protective hood to gather the sweet harvest.

The Queen is also a keen apiarist, and keeps bees at Raymill, her six-bedroom retreat in Lacock, Wiltshire, 17 miles from the King’s Highgrove home.

During a visit to Launceston, Cornwall, last summer Queen Camilla met honey-producers selling jars in the town square, and told them she was a hands-on beekeeper and had only lost one colony during the previous winter.

King Charles in Argentina wearing a beekeeper suit for a visit to see bee keeping at Buenas Ondas organic vegetable garden CREDIT: Tim Graham

Honey produced by the Queen’s bees is sold at Fortnum & Mason to raise funds for charity. This year’s recipient is Nigeria’s first sexual assault referral centre, which the Queen supports as patron.

She is also president of Bees for Development, a charity training beekeepers and protecting bee habitats in more than 50 countries.

Buckingham Palace itself is home to four beehives on an island in a lake in the garden, and there are two hives in Clarence House’s garden.

These hives produced more than 300 jars of honey last year for the palace kitchens, which is frequently served to guests in honey madeleines, as a filling for chocolate truffles or in honey and cream sponge.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Princess of Wales tends her beehives in keeper’s suit (telegraph.co.uk)

With the ‘bombus bee’ project of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, in Turkey, bombus bees are produced under laboratory conditions. These bees ensure the fertilization of the products grown in greenhouses without the use of hormones and increase the yield. Bombus bees will increase the yield and quality by ensuring the hormone-free growth of eggplant, pepper, and other vegetables, especially tomatoes. It is also important for products such as melons and strawberries. While greenhouse cultivation is carried out on 81.000 hectares in Turkey, it is estimated that this area will expand with increasing momentum due to reasons such as global warming, population growth, and price stability. Bombus bees constitute the most important group after honey bees in the pollination of plants and are widely used, especially in greenhouse cultivation. While 600,000 of bombus bee families were sold in the country in the 2022-2023 season, the price for March 2023 was determined as 27 USD per colony. While greenhouse cultivation in Turkey is carried out in large areas in the Mediterranean and Aegean regions, the Directorate of Beekeeping Research Institute, which is the only beekeeping central unit of Turkey, evaluates the project activities carried out by growers. It has been determined that the use of bombus bees in greenhouses in the Black Sea Region was not common, especially in the pollination in tomato cultivation.

Thereupon, the project ‘Determination of Colony Characteristics and Suitability for Mass Production of Bombus Population in the Central Black Sea Coast Region’ was developed by the General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies (TAGEM). Within the scope of the project, the ‘Bombus Research and Application Laboratory’ was established in order to meet the needs of the sector and to ensure the commercialization potential of local bombus bee resources. The production of bombus bees in the laboratory environment started at the beginning of 2023. Bombus bees produced in the laboratory will be used in greenhouses in the provinces of the Black Sea Region. Within the scope of the studies carried out for the production of bombus bees, known as the ‘natural workers’ of the greenhouses, many colonies were obtained by enabling the ‘bombus terrestris’ breed queens to reproduce in the special climatization room created within the institute.

While bombus bees produced in the laboratory ensure the growth of eggplant, pepper, and other vegetables, especially tomatoes grown in greenhouses in the provinces of the Black Sea Region, without using hormones, it is aimed to increase the yield and quality of the products without disturbing the balance of nature. Thanks to bombus bees, which are used to help fertilize vegetables in greenhouse cultivation, labor costs are also reduced. A bombus bee visits 4,800 flowers in one day during its foraging activities.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Bombus bees are produced in laboratories to be used in greenhouses (hortidaily.com)

• by croatiaweek

Tvrtko Matijević (Photo credit: Nikola Zoko/Promo PR)

It is known that bee venom helps with inflammatory conditions and increases microcirculation of the blood by 200 times. It also works like natural Botox, tightening facial skin, smoothing wrinkles, and stimulating collagen production.

We spoke to Tvrtko Matijević, a Croatian beekeeper and owner of the BeeVenom brand, which has official certification for producing the highest quality bee venom and bee venom-based products in the world.

Matijević grew up in Zagreb with a love of nature and the countryside. He attended an agricultural school and graduated from the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Zagreb. During his high school years, he had a mishap while helping a friend move bees from one location to another, which resulted in 46 bee stings.

“That story is actually very interesting. A friend asked me to help him move bees from an acacia pasture to a linden pasture in Virovitica, and at the time I only had a torn beekeeping suit with lots of holes. The night was extremely steamy and the bees quite aggressive, so during the migration phase I ‘earned’ as many as 46 stings. The scenes were comical – you carry a beehive with 60,000 bees in it, they sting you, and you can’t take the beehive because then the situation would be 100 times worse,” he told us.

Despite this incident, he became interested in beekeeping and eventually grew his hobby from three hives to 150.

When Matijević began beekeeping, his main focus was on producing bee venom, though he also considered other bee products.

In 2015, he developed a unique technology for extracting bee venom and received confirmation from the Dr. Andrija Štampar Institute that his product was the highest quality bee venom in the world. This encouraged him to develop a brand, and in 2021, BeeVenom products were launched on the Croatian market.

BeeVenom products are made with bee venom that contains 70% melittin, a protein that is responsible for the benefits of bee venom.

“Bee venom has been known throughout the world since ancient times. For example, the bee venom produced in the world contains 45-55% melittin, while our bee venom produced with my technology, where no bees were harmed at any time, contains 70% melittin,” he says.

Melittin is known to destroy cancer cells, boost the immune system, and reduce inflammation. Bee venom is also known to work as a natural Botox, tightening the skin, smoothing wrinkles, and stimulating collagen production.

The BeeVenom brand is unique because of its high-quality bee venom and the innovative technology used to extract it.

To read the complete article go to;

Meet the Croatian beekeeper behind the world’s best bee venom | Croatia Week

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Figure 1. Importance of traits to beekeepers in 2022. The scores given to each trait were summed and then divided by the total.

Australia 2022 Plan Bee Survey results: breeding objectives

2023 By Nadine Chapman And Elizabeth Frost

Plan Bee, Australia’s national honey bee genetic improvement program conducts an annual survey of beekeepers and breeders to determine attitudes and opinions surrounding honey bee genetics.

This annual survey is a crucial activity as it helps guide Plan Bee, ensuring that the needs of the industry are well understood, and that the future direction of the project is aligned to the future of the industry.

In 2022 82 beekeepers gave ‘weights’ to their breeding objectives. For example, they allocated 60% to honey production and 40% to temperament. Honey production (33%) and temperament (23%), were the most sought after traits, just as they were in 2021 (Figure 1). However, since 2021, the weighting of these two traits has increased even further. The next most desired trait was pest and disease resistance (a sum of individual traits relating to hygienic behaviour, chalkbrood, pest/disease, European foulbrood, small hive beetle, American foulbrood, Varroa, Nosema), this totalled 16% of the score. As for past surveys different sectors of the beekeeping community placed different weight on different traits (Figure 2).

To access the complete report go to;

2022 Plan Bee Survey results: breeding objectives – Professional Beekeepers | Professional Beekeepers (extensionaus.com.au)

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: 2022 Plan Bee Survey results: breeding objectives – Professional Beekeepers | Professional Beekeepers (extensionaus.com.au)

Source: EU Coordinated action to deter certain fraudulent practices in the honey sector, JRC Technical report

The EU market is flooded with syrup-based “honey”: finally putting a figure on foul play!
The European Commission published two joint reports on fraudulent practices in imports of honey into the EU. According to investigations, 46% of the collected samples were suspected of being adulterated with added syrups. This dramatic situation has been denounced by Copa and Cogeca for years now. Yet solutions are known and unanimously supported by the sector: it is high time for the EU to act!
Thanks to joint work by DG Sante, JRC and OLAF, the Commission has quantified an alarming reality: of the 320 samples received from competent national authorities, 147 (46%) were suspected of non-compliance with the requirements of the EU Honey Directive. Almost 74% of the Chinese, 93% of the Turkish and 100% of the British honey samples were considered “suspicious”!

Read the full Press Release here: Press Release

By Andrew Mambondiyani, originally published by YES! magazine

Smallholder farmers in Village M—a farming community south of the eastern border city of Mutare in Zimbabwe—have, for years, enjoyed bumper harvests of maize and other crops. However, the abundant yields in Village M and surrounding communities have diminished considerably over the past 20 years. Large swathes of previously productive farmland now lie neglected, overrun by rough thickets of sickle bushes.

Several areas across Zimbabwe have been ravaged by severe climate change-induced droughts. A 2021 study revealed that Zimbabwe’s temperatures rose 1 degree Celsius between 1960 and 2000, while annual rainfall decreased 20% to 30%. Experts estimate that climate change will reduce agricultural production in Sub-Saharan Africa by 10% to 20% by the year 2050.

But Lazarus Mwakateve, a smallholder farmer from Village M, has diversified his operation to offset crop losses from droughts. He ventured into beekeeping more than a decade ago, largely as a pastime, but the enterprise has since morphed into a lucrative alternative source of income for him.

“Beekeeping does not need large pieces of land or large amounts of water like crop farming,” Mwakateve says.

Many other farmers are following in Mwakateve’s footsteps. Experts say there are more than 50,000 beekeepers in Zimbabwe today.

Mwakateve has 53 beehives, and as of last September, he says 26 of them had bees and honey. Each beehive provides between 33 and 35 liters of honey each year. And each liter of honey earns Mwakateve US$3.20 when he sells them to middlemen.

“Droughts reduce income from crops down to zero in some cases, but income from honey has remained stable even during the worst droughts,” Mwakateve says.

Honey Harvesting on the Rise

Village M is an enclave tucked at the foot of Gombai mountain. Nearby, the Mushaamhuru River snakes sluggishly along the heavily silted riverbed as it heads toward its confluence with the Mpudzi River. Rain-fed crop farming has long been the mainstay of these communities, but changing climate is putting Zimbabweans—some 70% of whom depend entirely on agriculture or rural economic activities—in jeopardy.

However, local demand for honey is growing both on the formal and informal markets. The day before Christmas in 2022, I witnessed an informal honey seller roving around a local business center, Gutaurare, selling honey from a 25-liter plastic container. Such informal honey sellers are now a common sight in the streets of the city of Mutare.

Techniques

To succeed in this new enterprise, Mwakateve says beekeepers must acquire knowledge on beekeeping and honey harvesting techniques.

“Our traditional ways of harvesting honey are not good for bees,” he says. This involves using fire to smoke out the bees, which ends up killing large numbers of them. But new techniques, like bee smokers and bee suits, are gentler on the bees while still protecting the beekeepers.

Traditional beehives in eastern Zimbabwe. Photo by Andrew Mambondiyani

To read the complete article go to;

Why Farmers in Zimbabwe Are Shifting to Bees – Resilience

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Canadian Honey Council

February 2023

It is indeed unfortunate that the American Beekeepers Federation, the American Honey Producers Association and those Canadian operators having an interest in importing American packaged bees are attempting to capitalize on the fear of introducing tropilaelaps mites.

The Canadian Honey Council would much have preferred if the ABF and the AHPA had first contacted the CHC for information regarding status, demand, and possible rationale for border opening. The CHC would have appreciated nothing more than to add to a substantive history of working together in a mutually beneficial manner. As it is, the CHC feels it necessary to clarify some issues concerning Canada’s permitted importation of package bees, particularly from Australia as well as the threat of the introduction of tropilaelaps mites. With respect, the two issues should have been dealt with separately, but they have unfortunately been intertwined.

The CHC represents every provincial beekeeping organization in Canada and as such, speaks for all beekeepers. The package issue in Canada is divisive, but it is important to note that the interest group calling for the opening of the US border does not represent all commercial operations nor is it even clear they represent a majority of commercial operations. They do, however represent a substantial number of colonies in certain regions of the country and we continue to listen to those from all points of view.

The CHC and the ABF have had a good working relationship. More recently, we have expanded our relationship building to work closer with the American Honey Producers Association. While honey sales, adulterated honey and trans-shipped honey has been a primary concern, stock issues, particularly related to queen sales has also been important. Working with California queen producers, the Canadian Honey Council was able to ease some of their reporting burdens and when “Africanized bees” were found in the quarantine zone, we were quickly able to work with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency based on science and agreed to developed strategies to mitigate the issue. Consequently, imports were resumed in a timely manner.

Last year, Canadian beekeepers from most areas in the country experienced devastating losses and the demand to stock increased dramatically. Calls to open the border to US packages intensified, firstly focusing on receiving packages from the northern California quarantine zone, then expanding to Georgia and now the mainland US. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency put out an open call for additional research to see if there were any changes to the risks that had been identified in a 2013 risk assessment of US packages. Four risks were identified in 2013

• amitraz resistant mites, • small hive beetle, • AFB resistance • Africanized bees.

The CHC has indicated that if the science supports the decision to open the border, the border should open. However, it is not up to beekeepers or associations to determine if the science is sound, it is up to the experts at CFIA that evaluate the honey bee health status in Canada and the potential bee exporting country. For example,…..

To Read the Complete Document go to https://honeycouncil.ca/

Links from the CHC:

Canadian-Honey-Council-Statement-on-Importation-of-bees-tropilaelapes-Feb-2023.pdf (honeycouncil.ca)

Canadian Honey Council – Serving Beekeepers since 1940

News – Canadian Honey Council

Young people from Kolasin believe in success

The Perisic family from Kolasin, a small town in Montenegro’s north-east, bought several bee colonies last year and already enjoying in quality honey from their own production. Fun fact: this work is mostly done by a twenty-year-old student of economics, Milica Perisic.

Together with eight other young enthusiasts, Milica has recently taken up beekeeping thanks to the project of the Association of Beekeepers from Kolasin, which promotes this noble hobby among youth. This association has provided beginners with complete beekeeping accessories, modern literature and detailed training on beekeeping. The European Union, UNDP Montenegro and the Municipality of Kolasin, joined in the ReLOaD2 project, have made it possible for these young people to open their joint “practical apiary”, where they train young women and men from Kolasin to provide proper bee care.

The Perisic family are interested in beekeeping since the COVID-19 pandemic when people have become very interested in natural products. The project of the Association of Beekeepers came at the right time, giving Milica the opportunity and motivation to confidently venture into beekeeping.

Milica believes beekeeping is a serious opportunity for development, even though it is only a hobby for family and friends for now. “First of all, this is a great way to spend my free time, to spend some time in nature and observe these incredible small creatures, but also, this is a great opportunity to make money – and I won’t give up”, Milica says.

She admits that people find it unusual for a young woman to be engaged in beekeeping. “Sometimes they make jokes when I look for books and magazines about beekeeping, because they often think of it as a hobby for older, retired people, but eventually, everyone is interested in learning more about my hobby”, Milica added. She spends a lot of time in Podgorica due to her studies, but she spends every free moment of her time to come to Kolasin. Milica says she can imagine herself living in future in this town which she has perceived as a holdback while she was a high school student.

Thirty-year-old Djordjije Scepanovic has also bought his first bee colonies half a year ago: “I’ve always been interested in this, but somehow, I lacked time and conditions. Then I’ve decided to sign up for training in Kolasin, and with new daily learnings I’m already satisfied with the progress. It is true that I’m a beginner, but I see a perspective in this, because there will be no human species without bees”, he said.

Djordjije is considering beekeeping as his main job. “I’ve suffered an injury that prevents me from continuing with the work I’ve been doing so far, and this alternative appeared at the right moment. I will dedicate myself to beekeeping because it offers so much, and compared to any other job, it also gives you relaxation and enjoyment”, he said.

The Association of Beekeepers has been promoting beekeeping for 20 years, and they see the past year as the most successful in that sense.

Representatives of the Association of Beekeepers note that there is a great demand for bee products, while the current production in Montenegro does not meet the needs of the market. They believe that the economic environment in Kolasin has rapidly improved with the highway construction, adding that an incredible wealth remains unused in rural areas – endemic species and diverse floral flora, which Milica and Dordjije have recognized brilliantly.

Numerous parts of Montenegro, which is the home for a half of all European plant species, represent an inexhaustible potential for beekeeping. “That’s why I recommend everyone who is at least a little bit interested in nature to think about similar ventures”, the President of the Association, Bogoljub Bulatovic, says.

“In addition to the tools and knowledge young people have gained, the entire local community will benefit, because the development of beekeeping improves fruit growing, and thus the entire agriculture. Since the beginning of the project, our membership has increased by 25%. If only two people decide to devote themselves seriously to beekeeping, and there will likely be many more, the landscape of the Kolasin area will change significantly”, Bulatovic pointed out.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Beekeeping as a hobby and business of the future | United Nations Development Programme (undp.org)

ANI

KVIC chairman speaking at Khadi Honey Mission dialogue program in Kaithal (Photo/PIB)

New Delhi [India], January 15 (ANI): The Beekeeping industry helps increase crop productivity by 30 per cent and thus enhances the overall income of the farmers, the Chairman of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) Manoj Kumar said.

“Beekeeping is the medium of sweet revolution, more income can be earned by joining this work,” Manoj Kumar said addressing the Khadi Honey Mission dialogue program in Haryana’s Kaithal which also included the distribution of 200 bee boxes to 20 beekeepers in its village Devra.

In his address, he also described the beekeeping industry as an eco-friendly industry, which not only generates income but also increases the productivity of the crop by 30 per cent by the pollen grains spread by the bees.

He said that considering the benefits of the industry, the country is now putting a lot of focus on it to produce more honey.

To achieve the goal of ‘Sweet Revolution in the country, the Government of India has approved a new Central Sector Scheme ‘National Beekeeping and Honey Mission’ (NBHM) for the overall promotion and development of scientific beekeeping and production of quality honey, along with other beehive products to encourage the holistic development of beekeeping.

The NBHM is said to follow three mini missions, namely, Mini Mission I under which the government will give a thrust to production and productivity improvement of various crops through pollination assisted by adoption of scientific beekeeping; Mini Mission II under which they will concentrate on post-harvest management of beekeeping and beehive products including the collection, processing, storage, marketing, value addition with a thrust to develop requisite infrastructural facilities for these activities; and Mini Mission III which will concentrate on Research and Technology generation for different Regions, States, and Agro-Climatic and Socio-Economic conditions.

The KVIC launched the Honey Mission Programe under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) during 2017-18 to promote Bee Keeping activities and provide self-sustaining employment opportunities among farmers, Adivasis and unemployed youth in the rural India, especially in economically backward and remote areas.

Under the said programme, the beneficiaries are provided with Bee Boxes, live bee colonies, tool kits and training. So far, 1 lakh 75 thousand bee boxes have been distributed by the Commission (KVIC) after providing beekeeping training to 17 thousand 500 beneficiaries across the country, a statement from Press Information Bureau said.

Meanwhile, a ‘Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries’ (SFURTI) was also implemented by the Ministry of MSME, under which the traditional beekeepers are provided with sustainable employment by organizing them into clusters and supporting them with new machinery and training.

Under the NBHM scheme of the Ministry of Agriculture, scientific beekeeping is being promoted for holistic growth of the sector, leading to income and employment generation and livelihood support to farm and non-farm households.

A unique innovation was taken by KVIC in the form of a mobile honey process van in January 2022.

In a village of Uttar Pradesh, KVIC unveiled the first mobile honey processing van in the nation.

As it used to cost lot for small farmers and beekeepers to carry honey to processing facilities, the mobile honey processing van was launched to minimise the costs associated with honey extraction and processing. Also, with this van, the processing could take place at farmers’ or beekeepers’ doorsteps, thus preventing any possibility of honey adulteration.

Notably, Jharkhand is the state known best for the implementation of the sweet revolution. As the state’s climate is suitable for honey production, around 30 per cent of the land is covered by forest which is the most important resource for honey production. The KVIC has taken several training programmes in the state to leverage the opportunity.

India is one of the leading honey-exporting countries in the world. Organic honey produced in India reaches the markets of Germany, the USA, the UK, Japan, France, Italy, and Spain among others.

The country has exported about 74,413 metric tons (MT) of honey worth Rs 1,221.17 crore during 2021-22, majorly to the US, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Bangladesh and Qatar. About 13,000 beekeepers are currently registered on the National Bee Board, which is known to provide employment to more than 3 lakh rural people. (ANI)

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Beekeeping increases crop production by 30 pc: KVIC chairman Manoj Kumar – ThePrint – ANIFeed