Spoiler alert: There is no Plan B. What shareholders saw was what they didn’t get. The chance to exit Comvita shares at NZc 80 per share courtesy of the Florenz takeover bid has flown. But if there was a Plan B, what would it look like? And what fate awaits shareholders now that Comvita’s future hangs in the balance? Bruce Roscoe comments.

John Bush was born into beekeeping in Marlborough and, for the recently deceased 94-year-old who pioneered beekeeping on New Zealand’s largest farm, it was his passion and a huge part of his identity right to the end. Murray Bush reflects on his father’s beekeeping life, from the supreme work-ethic of a boy raised in the depression, to building an iconic South Island honey-brand and mentoring the next generation of local beekeepers.

Building on from columns analysing the failings of existing beekeeping and honey industry governance (The Future of Beekeeping Representation: Let’s Talk About It) and what he sees as an ideal governance structure for the future (Let’s Move the Conversation Forward), Darren Bainbridge now addresses the term thrown forward by many as an essential building block: “unity”.

It’s been a bumper honey season for John Berry’s son Chris in his now-home of Norway as the long daylight hours, combined with some hot, dry weather have seen a range of nectars flowing. The Hawke’s Bay beekeeper reports on his recent travels to 61 degrees north where some late-summer work awaited.

Our time in the orchards has come to an end. Consummation of the kiwifruit means our tempo has slowed. Beekeeping activities are winding down as the temperature rises, and yeah baby, things are heating up.

Comvita’s shareholders have denied the wishes of both their board and biggest shareholders to vote down the takeover bid of Florenz and one of New Zealand’s wealthiest people, Mark Stewart, in a decision that pushes New Zealand’s largest honey company closer to receivership.

In recent times a new type of honey fraud has emerged, which involves systematic ‘drying’ of high-moisture honey – or perhaps more accurately, nectar – and recently the Internation Federation of Beekeepers’ Associations (Apimondia) took aim at it with release of the Apimondia Statement on Immature Honey Production. With honey moisture reduction common practice among the New Zealand honey industry, some of the statement’s wording risks tarnishing methods designed to improve ho

Overloading of bank debt and a collapsed share price opened the door for Florenz Ltd to plot a takeover of Comvita Ltd for NZc80 per share or NZD56.4m. Both Comvita and Grant Samuel, the adviser it appointed, have warned that shareholder rejection of the offer could result in receivership of the mānuka honey industry’s flagship company. Bruce Roscoe weighs Comvita’s legacy of debt and critiques the adviser’s report to shareholders.

Attempts between current groups Apiculture New Zealand (ApiNZ) and New Zealand Beekeeping Inc (NZBI) to form a draft structure of a new national level industry body for beekeepers continued through October, but as the calendar turned to November each has identified sticking points which are slowing progress

Last month biosecurity found and removed three yellow-legged hornet queens in Auckland, following on from the discovery of two male hornets in different suburbs of the city in June and July. The presence of both male and female of the species is a “considerable concern” says invasive species expert Prof. Phil Lester.

The biggest food trade show in the most populous country on earth, World Food India, proved an eye-opening experience for the UMF Honey Association (UMFHA) in September. Marketing manager Campbell Naish reports on what we know about a potentially huge honey market and why – at least to this point – it has gone largely untapped by Kiwi honey producers.

This year marks John Berry’s 60th as a beekeeper and, knowing there is still plenty for him to learn, for the first time the Hawke’s Bay lad headed off to the World Beekeeping Congress that is ‘Apimondia’.