How to start bee farming – Farmer

As a specialist in bee farming, how can someone who doesn’t have an idea start this business? I usually tell people who want to venture into bee farming business to seek knowledge and go for training. Because it is better to teach a person how to catch fish than give him fish to eat. I […]

As a specialist in bee farming, how can someone who doesn’t have an idea start this business?
I usually tell people who want to venture into bee farming business to seek knowledge and go for training. Because it is better to teach a person how to catch fish than give him fish to eat. I have been in the business of bee keeping for the past 17-18 years and I always advise people that it’s not all about going into bee keeping. After acquiring knowledge, you must make up your mind on the type of business to venture into because the knowledge gained would guide you on how to go about it.
How much is needed to start bee farming?
Bee farming is one of the agricultural enterprises that you can start with little capital; as low as N50,000 but also as high as N5 million or N10 million. The equipment in bee-keeping, like bee hives, are produced locally to help reduce the cost.
How many hectares of land are required to start bee farming?
You don’t need to own land before you start bee farming. You can hire a piece of land or partner with fruit farmers that have citrus and mango trees because you are doing them a favour by putting your hives there. As we know, bees are agents of pollination and by putting your hives there – the bees will pollinate the fruits trees, which will assist the farmers to double their harvests.
What are the basic rules to successful bee farming?
The first thing is to have basic knowledge because you don’t give what you don’t have. Good management of bees is also paramount; you need to manage your pairing very well. In the aspect of hives construction, it must be to the target and finally, you must have a very good location.
I usually tell people there are conditions for siting the hives; you just don’t put it anywhere. It must not be close to the road side because of noise and then one must avoid areas where pesticides or insecticides are used.
The box must not be placed on a mashing ground; it must be a little bit dry. Don’t put them on swampy areas because the bees have their body temperature. So you have to be very careful on that. Again, one must note that when siting the hives, it must be close to the source of their food source. Don’t put them in the desert because bees travel as far as three kilometres to get their food.
But we are so blessed in Nigeria with food plants. We have about two hundred plants that can give bees food, unlike the temperate countries that don’t have some of these plants.
It must be close to source of water because bees drink water too. The food of bees depends on nectar and pollen and as a bee farmer, you must ensure that your hives are close to where there is nectar and pollen.
What quantity of honey can a farmer get from a bee hive?
You can get up to 10-15 litres of honey per hive.
Are there marketing constraints with bee products?
As am talking to you, I have been asked to supply 5,000 litres of honey in Ghana, but I cannot meet the demand. That is why we are trying to bring many people into bee the farming business. I have acquired five different hectares of land and anybody who is interested in the business can apply and pay little amount to keep his box there.