Beekeeping ‘Event’ Uncertain, Science Symposium Off, but Mānuka Orchard Open Again

As the calendar turns to May, and the hopes at a new and improved industry body for commercial beekeepers wind on, the time for a winter beekeeping ‘conference’ draws close. However, at this stage no national-level event is set on the beekeeping calendar.

For the past decade Apiculture New Zealand (ApiNZ), formed in 2016, has hosted a major winter conference in the majority of winters, and before them it was the realm of their predecessor the National Beekeepers' Association, with locations varied around New Zealand. With the future of ApiNZ in flux, it is hoped that “mid-July” could serve as an approximate time for an “event” for beekeepers, which could potentially tie into plans to formulate a new industry body.

With uncertainty surrounding the hosting of a beekeeping event by an industry body, plus cancellation of the Honey Bee Research Symposium, Bay of Plenty honey facility Mānuka Orchard will welcome beekeepers to their annual Open Day, July 24.

There is water to go under that bridge though, with a new constitution yet to be publicly circulated, meaning at this stage no date has been set, and limited plans are in place from ApiNZ’s side, chief executive Karin Kos told an online meeting of members on April 30.

A casualty of that uncertainty is the Honey Bee Research Symposium which, for the last 6 years, has been held in June, July or August.

“We were exploring the possibility of hosting a seventh iteration of the Symposium in Hamilton or Wellington, but with rising fuel costs, no set date of a wider beekeeping conference to coincide it with, and our organisers also away at different times, it all got a bit too hard,” Symposium organiser John Mackay says.

Feedback from regular attendees is supportive though Mackay says, so organisers fully anticipate holding an event in 2027.

Conversely, Mānuka Orchard owner Logan Bowyer says in the absence, or at least uncertainty, of a larger national-level event for beekeepers they welcome people to their July 24 Open Day in Paengaroa, Bay of Plenty.

Initially believing there would be a larger industry-wide get-together, he says they had planned to scale back the event this year and focus on their honey processing, storage and sales business’s core supporters. Now though, stressing the importance of beekeepers having the opportunity to stay informed of industry matters, in person, plus socially, he is encouraging anyone wishing to join their open day to reach out for details.

Email justine@manukaorchard.com for Mānuka Orchard Open Day details.