Bees for Development Journal 102
INDIA
More than 500 poor farmers are generating income from beekeeping in Orissa State. In 1982 I started beekeeping as a hobby, but now it has become my main profession. We established the NGO Jiban Bikash and Centre for Bee Research in 1992 to work on beekeeping and its promotion among farmers and poor and landless people. We act as service providers, promoters and facilitators. For the last three years we have received a grant of Rs 2.5 lakh INR (US$5,000; €3,000) from the Orissa State Government. We are pleased with our achievements. The study materials provided by Bf D Trust including BfDJ are very informative. We use them in our work to motivate farmers to adopt beekeeping. Bikash Patra, Jiban Bikash, Kaduapada, Orissa
PHOTO © BIKASH PATRA
NEWS AROUND THE WORLD
(Right) The NGO Jiban Bikash giving training
NEW ZEALAND
SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES
Bees on a boat
After fighting Varroa for ten years, the New Zealand bee industry is facing a new threat. Beekeepers say that the country's transition to dairy farming has wiped out many plants that bees rely on for pollen, and are reporting a marked decrease in pollen sources nationwide. With the spread of dairy farms and the need for large open paddocks, areas are cleared of plants like gorse and broom. “Beekeepers know farmers do not want these plants but believe there are places on farms, along stream boundaries, for example, where cattle do not graze where plants could be allowed to grow,” said John Hartnell of Federal Farmers. Stuart Ecroyd said: “Many customers come into our store (Ecroyd Beekeeping Supplies) requesting pollen supplements. They are becoming more popular, year by year”.
In 2007 I was asked to run a week’s training course for the beekeepers of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines who had suffered from a history of bee diseases and pest problems. I located only six bee colonies in St Vincent, and the Grenadine Islands had no honey bees. Crop failure was first hand and real and the farms I visited were a testament to this. The following year we transferred clean European honey bees from St Lucia on a 12 hour ferry crossing to the Grenadine Island of Bequia. The colonies prospered, but the bees liked to swarm, which is not good on small islands. The beekeepers elected to buy new queens from Hawaii*. At the time, this seemed to be a good solution: the bees became calmer, easier to manage, and everyone loved working with them. This encouraged others to take up
PHILIPPINES
We conducted a five day beekeeping course for agricultural extension workers in Cordillera Administrative Region and have practical training planned through to June 2012. We also train young bee enthusiasts most recently at the Small World Christian Academy and the Pines Learning Centre.
PHOTOS © EDMUND BENAVIDEZ
Source: ONE News, December 2011
Edmund B Benavidez, St Louis University Extension Institute for Small-Scale Industries Foundation, Baguio City
Educating young beekeeping enthusiasts
Training for agricultural extension workers 10
