– many now turning to bees to support, supplement their livelihood

THE buzzing of bees often sends many scurrying for safety, but not all are scared.
Others have found ingenious ways of harnessing these sometimes deadly creatures to create viable businesses while at the same time ensuring a green and flourishing environment for agriculture.

As chiefly pollinators, bees are more helpful than harmful to humans, unless if disturbed.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), three out of four crops for human consumption are dependent on pollinators and enhancing their density and diversity is vital to improvement in crop yield.

Underscoring their importance to the environment, the United Nations body noted that bees and other pollinators have been in existence for millions of years and have ensured food security, maintenance of biodiversity and vibrant ecosystems for plants and humans.
Here in Guyana, a largely agriculture producing nation, their presence, except for a few deadly encounters with humans, have been no different.

In fact, some Guyanese have become versed in the art of trapping bees for honey and have turned this trade into a thriving business. Beekeeping is, therefore, no fly-by-night business in Guyana. Guyanese have been rearing these small, hairy and at times menacing creatures for years.

The earliest known umbrella organisation, the Guyana Beekeepers Association, was established in 1932 but waned several decades after before finally going out of existence in the 1970s, said Linden Stuart, a full-time beekeeper for over 40 years.

With a resurgence in interest after many years of dormancy, the organisation was revived in 2010 but was renamed the Guyana Apiculture Society (GAS) with a focus on providing vital support and extension services to all registered players in the industry.

Since coming into existence nine years ago, GAS has brought under its wings three large beekeeping enterprises and has an overall membership of about 30 individuals. However, treasurer of the organisation, Aubrey Roberts, told Guyana Chronicle that the persons and organisations registered with GAS do not comprise all the players in the industry.

TRAINING
He estimates that around 120 beekeepers are yet to be registered under the umbrella body and efforts are being made to bring them onboard. In a bid to keep existing members and encourage new members into beekeeping, GAS has been hosting workshops on the essentials of the business.

The workshops devote a significant amount of time putting bees in a positive light, highlighting their importance to the environment and benefits of honey to human health.
Stuart, who is vice-chairman of GAS, said the organization, since coming into existence, has created a small buzz of economic activities, pointing out, for example, that beekeeping equipment is made by tinsmiths; their protective garments are made by local professionals and when workshops are held, catering services spring into action.

Today, he said, the negative perception of bees is gradually changing and more young people are entering the beekeeping business. The local industry, including honey, value-added of honey and other associated areas of production, Stuart estimates, is worth around $ 430 million.

Common local value-added products of honey include hair food, candles, soaps, lip balm, shoe polish, wine and honey-roasted products.

With Guyana set to become an oil-producing nation next year, Stuart said farmers must not move away from agriculture and agro-processing, particularly apiculture.

“It is a growing industry,” the veteran beekeeper told Guyana Chronicle while pointing out that though bee-keeping involves diligent work, it is a profitable business once managed well.

The life of a worker bee is six weeks while a drone (male bee) lives for two months if it does not mate with the queen. Drones die shortly after mating with the queen. A queen bee has a life span of two to three years, Stuart told this newspaper.

A hive, with bees, costs around $30,000 and takes about four to six months to produce honey. On average, one hive produces two gallons of honey. On the local market, the average wholesale price for a gallon of honey is $10,000. When retailed, the typical price for a one-litre bottle of honey is $2500.

DEMAND
Roberts said while GAS does not have data on local production, his information on the ground suggests that current supply cannot fulfil local demand.

And he is right. Data from the Ministry of Finance indicates that Guyana imports around $14 million worth in honey every year.

“We are aiming to fully meet local demands and also look at export markets. We produce 20 different flavours of honey and our honey is the best in the Caribbean,” he claimed.
Stuart, supporting this claim by Roberts, pointed out that in 2013, Guyana participated in the regional honey contest in Grenada and emerged champions, but due to lack of funding, it was unable to participate in the international competition that year.

“Quite ironically, Grenada, which lost to Guyana in the regional competition, participated and won the international competition. This time around, we are trying to raise enough funds to participate in the world which will be held in Montreal, Canada on September 8-13,” he said as he expressed optimism that Guyana will do well.

Industry newcomer, Ghansham Persaud, 39, an electrician from Herstelling, East Bank Demerara, told this newspaper that he is excited at the prospect of Guyana matching-up its honey with all the best in the world and sees a bright future for the industry.
“You don’t have to guard bees from thieves and that is one of the reasons I got into apiculture,” noted Persaud, who said he always love bees. Persaud is also trained to remove bees and has a small to medium size apiary on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway, which he intends to grow into a large-scale commercial enterprise.

Curtly Critchlow, 26, of Covent Garden, a data and system analyst at the Ministry of Finance, who started a small apiary some seven months ago, around the same time Persaud started, told this publication that he also intends to grow his hive for commercial purposes.

NEW LIFE
Both Persaud and Critchlow are products of GAS, which, since coming into being, has provided much steam to the industry. The growing interest in beekeeping was evident when Guyana hosted the ninth Caribbean Beekeeping Congress last November. Stuart noted that of the 126 attendees, 108 were locals and a recommendation was made to make beekeeping a part of the curriculum of the Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA).
The conference, he said, also breathed new life into the apiculture industry, pointing out that from then to now, more than 100 persons have been trained in workshops sponsored by the Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA) and the Ministry of the Presidency. The Linden Enterprise Network (LEN) has also chipped in to help interested persons with financing to get into the enterprise.

Roberts, interjecting in the interview, said that now that the industry is growing, there is need for extension service as well as a queen-rearing service to improve the stock, performance and quality of bees.

“We need the science and research support,” he said. The Guyana Apiculture Society is also looking for land to establish a pasture for breeding of bees; vending and displaying of bee-related products; and conducting of school tours, among other activities.

Unlike what many believe, he said, bees do not go around stinging people unless they are provoked and when they do get aggressive, they do so in defence of their hive(s).
“They (bees) play an important role in maintaining food security, flourishing agriculture and a green environment,” said Roberts as he related that GAS, in the next five years, will be seeking to build capacity among beekeepers, help reduce youth unemployment and provide sustenance for all players in the industry.