Apiculture in Jamaica

An Overview of the Beekeeping Industry in Jamaica Mona School of Business – University of the West Indies Course Title: Foundation Skills in Graduate Management Education Course Code: SBCO6000 Lecturer: Mr. Claude Robinson Due Date: July 8, 2012 ID#: 620051236 (Cohort 16) MEMORANDUM UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES, MONA To: Mr.

Claude Robinson Associate Teaching Fellow, Mona School of Business From:La-Shaun Latore Student, Cohort 16, Mona School of Business ------------------------------------------------- Subject:Submission of Individual AssignmentSubsequent to the issued assignment in the course outline mandating that each student submit a report on a topic of her choosing, the attached research paper was completed. The report is titled “An Overview of the Beekeeping Industry in Jamaica. ” Please feel free to contact me with any questions. Attch. Table of Contents An Overview of the Beekeeping Industry in Jamaica2 Introduction2 Advantages of Beekeeping2 Government Regulations and Services2 Beekeeping Associations3 Beekeeping Census and Growth of the Industry4 Threats to the Industry4 Future of the Industry and Current Initiatives5References6 Executive Summary Beekeeping in Jamaica dates back to 1896.

It is an attractive venture that allows for other employment and can generate several products, with honey being the most popular product. The Bees Control Act was introduced in 1918 is administrated by the Apiculture Unit in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. This Unit employs trained, experienced beekeepers as Extension Officers who provide support to the island’s 1,800 bee farmers in running and generating income from their apiaries. Bee farmers earn approximately $450 million each year.There are currently two main beekeeping bodies: the All Island Bee Farmer’s Association and the Jamaica Federation of Commercial Apiculturists.

Both bodies aim to protect the beekeeping industry and improve the livelihood of bee farmers in Jamaica. The main issues threatening the beekeeping industry are disease, pests and lack of funding. In the near future, the Apiculture Unit intends to submit recommendations to the Attorney General for revision of the Bees Control Act. The Unit also intends to develop a honey standard in conjunction with the Bureau of Standards.There are several projects and initiatives to encourage persons to enter bee farming in an attempt to preserve the industry. An Overview of the Beekeeping Industry in Jamaica La-Shaun Latore – ID# 620051236 Mona School of Business MBA Part-Time (Cohort 16) July 8, 2012 An Overview of the Beekeeping Industry in Jamaica Introduction Apiculture, most commonly known as beekeeping, is the management and study of honeybees.

Honeybees are indigenous to Europe, Asia, and Africa and were introduced to the Americas by European settlers (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations n. d. ).According to Bees for Development (2002), Jamaica’s earliest beekeeping ventures may be traced back to the year 1896. Advantages of Beekeeping Beekeeping is an attractive venture as it is not labour intensive and allows time for other employment.

It is environmentally friendly and there is no competition for food between bees and other animals. Beekeepers do not need to own the land where their apiaries are housed, neither do they need to occupy a large space. An apiary can produce at least seven products concurrently namely honey, beeswax, propolis, bee pollen, royal jelly, queen bees, and packaged bees (R.Peddy, personal communication, July 6, 2012). Government Regulations and Services The Jamaican Government has long recognized the importance of beekeeping and has sought to protect the apiculture industry. In 1918, the Bee Control Act was signed into law with an aim to regulate the terms under which bees may be imported and transported, the prescribed measures to protect bee colonies from disease, and penalties for breaches of the Act (Ministry of Agriculture & Fisheries [MOA], 2011).

The last update to this Act was published in 1973.Consequently, some of the fines imposed by the Act – such as a $100 penalty for wilful mismanagement of an apiary – are unlikely to be effective deterrents to breaches of the Act. The Apiculture Unit at the Bodles Agricultural Research Station in Old Harbour, St. Catherine is responsible for “administrating the Bee Control Act through research, regulation, and extension services”. The Apiculture Unit’s Extension Officers play a vital support role in the industry. All the officers are trained and practicing beekeepers; this enables them to share firsthand knowledge of the best apiary management practices.

Their training and experience assist them in guiding bee farmers on disease prevention and control, marketing and business management, and funding opportunities. Extension Officers also provide support to aspirant apiculturists (MOA, 2011). Beekeeping Associations For over 100 years, bee farmers in Jamaica have banded together with a view to collectively protect their livelihood. Established in 1902, the now defunct Jamaica Beekeepers Association was the first beekeeping body in the Caribbean (Bees for Development, 2002).There are currently two major associations targeting bee farmers. The All Island Bee Farmers’ Association (AIBFA) was formed in 1989 as a result of the Beekeeping Development Project that was started by the Ministry of Agriculture in 1985 (All Island Bee Farmers Association [AIBFA], 2009).

It is the non-profit parent organization of 13 parish bee farmers associations – Kingston and St. Andrew are represented by one association – and boasts a membership of over 600 bee farmers.The Association’s mandate is “to play an integral role in the development and advancement of the beekeeping industry by stimulating, promoting and protecting the interest of bee farmers and positively affecting policy, programs and practices in the industry” (2009). In 2001, five commercial apiculturists, with a specific interest in protecting their sub-sector of the beekeeping industry, formed the Jamaica Federation of Commercial Apiculturists (JFCA).

The Federation’s main goal is “to facilitate the growth, expansion and development of apiculture in Jamaica, through successful, large scale, commercial bee farming enterprises”.Since its inception, the JFCA has grown to over 30 members (Jamaica Federation of Commercial Apiculturists, 2011). Beekeeping Census and Growth of the Industry The last Census of Bee Farmers was conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MoA) in 2009. It revealed significant changes in the local apiculture industry since the previous census was conducted four years earlier. The census showed that there were just over 1,200 bee farmers, an increase of approximately 70% from the 2005 census when there were approximately 700 bee farmers.Notably, the census makes a comparison with the figures from the previous census in 1998 when there were also slightly more than 1,200 bee farmers.

The number of beehives counted in 2009 doubled from the 2005 figures; there were over 31,000 hives compared to 15,600 in 2005. Unfortunately, in the period between the 1998 census and the census conducted seven years later, many beehives were lost due to drought, disease and inclement weather, particularly Hurricane Ivan in September 2004 (MOA 2011). Jamaica’s apiculture industry has seen significant growth in recent years.In addition to the 70% increase in beekeepers between the last two censuses, an additional 600 beekeepers have joined the industry.

An inspection for American Foul Brood (AFB) disease conducted by the Apiculture Unit from May to December 2011 revealed a total of 42,000 bee colonies, up from 31,000 in the 2009 census. These increases are mainly due to the intervention of the MoA since 2005 with an investment of $30 million to enhance the apiculture industry. The island’s bee farmers now earn approximately $450 million each year (R. Peddy, 2012).Threats to the Industry Jamaica’s apiculturists are faced with several issues of varying severity however the bee farmers’ biggest issues are disease, pests, and lack of funding. The most common honeybee disease in Jamaica is AFB.

The AFB infection rate is currently below 1% of total hives, which is the internationally accepted standard (R. Peddy, 2012). Varroa Mite Disease, Chalk Brood, Small Hive Beetle and European Foul Brood are also causes for concern. Bee colonies may also be disturbed by ants, wax moths, and frogs/toads as well as other pests (MOA, 2011, pp.

0-31). Financial institutions have been reluctant to extend loans to current and aspirant beekeepers. In the 2009 Census of Bee Farmers, lack of funding was cited as a major reason for farmers not improving their operations (MOA, 2011 p. 30). Non-Governmental Organizations are aware of this issue and have responded by providing funding to some bee farmers as the industry is seen as a vehicle for driving growth in rural areas (R. Peddy, 2012).

Future of the Industry and Current InitiativesSeveral initiatives are being pursued to protect the future of the apiculture industry. The Apiculture Unit is slated to submit recommendations to the Attorney General by October 2012 to revise the Bee Control Act. Emphasis will be placed on where bees should not be reared, regulations for trans-shipment and importation of bees, and a revision of the fines for breaches of the Act, among other matters. The Apiculture Unit also intends to conduct a census every five years and develop a standard for honey in conjunction with the Bureau of Standards (R.

Peddy, 2012). Numerous projects are underway to encourage persons to enter the beekeeping industry. In Llandewey, St. Thomas, the United Nations Development Program and United States Agency for International Development collaborated to enable the Rural Youth Employment project which is supporting a youth beekeeping group to launch its business in honey production. Also, in January 2012, 18 farmers were certified after completing a 12-week training programme in St. Catherine (Sudu, 2012).

With the rapid growth in the beekeeping industry, its advantages as a profession and the government’s and NGOs willingness to fund projects in the industry, beekeeping will continue as a primary and adjunct profession for many years to come. References All Island Bee Farmers’ Association (2009). Profile of AIBFA. Retrieved July 4, 2012 from the AIBDV Honey Company Limited web site: http://www. aibdv. com/index.

php? option=com_content&view=article&id=9&Itemid=20 All Island Bee Farmers’ Association (2009). Structure of AIBFA.Retrieved July 4, 2012 from the AIBDV Honey Company Limited web site: http://www. aibdv. com/index. php? option=com_content&view=article&id=10&Itemid=22 Bees for Development (2002).

Zoom in on Jamaica. Retrieved July 3, 2012 from the Bees for Development web site: http://www. beesfordevelopment. org/uploads/BfDJ63%20Zoom%20in%20on%20Jamaica012. pdf Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (n.

d. ). Bees Around The World. Retrieved July 6, 2012 from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations web site: http://www. fao. org/docrep/006/y5110e/y5110e04.

htm Go-Jamaica (2011).