Honey ‘can pay bills’

From Page 12.

sweetener used in many foods, and while Barbados was a net importer, in time, with the development of the industry, imports would decline and more by-products would be on supermarket shelves.

“Bees can play a role in the improvement of our young people, especially females, who can develop small businesses centred around the bottling and sale of honey. There is also the opportunity to rent bees to serve as pollinators. Over a six-month-period, a developing hive can produce up to 40 pounds of honey, so it could provide further employment opportunities for those interested.”

Chandler added that people would also be encouraged to grow certain plants in their districts with the help of the Soil Conservation Unit so bees could forage.

He said an agroforestry station would soon be set up in the Scotland District, which represented about a seventh of the island’s landscape, and having bees on site would contribute to the success of that project.

He pointed out that a further reduction of the bee population could have serious implications for crop farmers, as bees were the main pollinators and their disappearance could result in famine.

There are about 120 beekeepers in the Barbados Beekeeping Association.

PARTICIPANTS at the beekeeping workshop.

CHIEF AGRICULTURAL OFFICER

Lennox Chandler (FP)

BEESWAX on display at the workshop.