Unity: The Hard Work Behind the Constitution

  APIARIST’S OPINION: DARREN BAINBRIDGE 

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”.

Darren Bainbridge – “If this joint constitution process collapses, it won’t be because the wording of Clause 7.3(b) was impossible. It will be because we carried the same old habits and rivalries into a process that requires a different mindset.”

By Darren Bainbridge

Over the last couple of articles, I have written about structures, boards, representation, and how a unified industry body could function. We have kicked around models like “one roof, two boards,” debated who should be at the table, and pointed out where previous attempts fell short.

Now Apiculture New Zealand (ApiNZ) and New Zealand Beekeeping Inc (NZBI) are sitting down together to draft a constitution they can both stand behind.

This is a big step.

But if we are honest, the real challenge isn’t just what goes into that constitution. It is how we behave around it as an industry and what we expect from the structure that comes out the other side. Even once the constitution is finalised and a new board is elected, the real machinery of the industry will still sit outside of this new board and peak body organisation.

Bee health and biosecurity will still be managed by the New Zealand Bee Health & Biosecurity Trust. Marketing, honey quality assurance, and international brand protection will still live with the UMF Honey Association (UMFHA). Research, extension, and industry support will remain scattered across whoever has the resources to do the work.

This means the job of the new board will not be simply to “lead”. Its first and foremost task will be to work with both the Trust and UMFHA on how we can eventually bring all three organisations together as one.

The constitution doesn’t create unity. It simply gives us a place to start building it.

Recognising the unity we already have

When people talk about unity, they often talk as though we are trying to bolt together a bunch of unrelated parts. But that’s not actually true.

We already share a deep, practical unity:

• We all rely on honey bees.

• We all depend on the sale of bee related products and services such as: honey, pollination, queens, nucs, and more.

• We all trade on New Zealand’s reputation in overseas markets.

• We are all exposed to the same biosecurity risks and the same economic roller coaster.

Whether you run 200 hives or 20,000, are a packer, an exporter, or a contract beekeeper, we are all tied into the same system.

Therefore, the goal of a new constitution isn’t to create unity out of nothing. It is to recognise and protect the unity that already exists, and stop smashing it to pieces every time a disagreement comes along.

This is the first mental shift the industry needs. We are not here to carve up territory, we are here to put a framework around the shared reality we already live in.

The Biggest Risk is us, not a new Constitution

If this joint constitution process collapses, it won’t be because the wording of Clause 7.3(b) was impossible. It will be because we carried the same old habits and rivalries into a process that requires a different mindset.

We have all seen it before:

• Old grudges dressed up as “principle”.

• “We are right, they are wrong” thinking.

• People fighting for status or position.

• The belief that unity must look exactly like my version, or not at all.

If we are serious about unity, we have to accept something uncomfortable: We don’t always need to get our own way.

That doesn’t mean we stop asking questions or stop pushing for better outcomes. It simply means we stop treating unity as a win-lose contest. The aim here isn’t victory for one group, it is survival and progress for the whole industry.

The Real Work Begins After the Signing

If the industry treats the constitution as the finish line, we have already lost because a constitution gives us a shared room, not a finished house.

Once the constitution is adopted, the new board won’t suddenly hold all the power. It will have no administrative team, no policy unit, and no operational capacity of its own. The heavy lifting will still be done by the NZ Bee Health & Biosecurity Trust, UMFHA, and the smaller groups carrying the load today.

That means unity will depend entirely on how well we collaborate after the ink dries.

Real unity will emerge only when bee health, market access and honey quality, and national representation begin operating with aligned purpose and shared accountability.

That is long-term work, uncomfortable work, and work a constitution alone cannot do.

So, while the board begins that process, the wider industry has its own role to play and the way we show up over the next few months will decide whether the new structure succeeds or collapses under the weight of old habits.

How We Support Unity from Here

If we want to back the new board and give the new constitution a real chance of succeeding, we will need to lean into these four simple but demanding principles.• We recognise and value the unity that already exists: For all our disagreements, the truth is we already share the same bees, the same markets, the same risks, and the same reputation. Unity isn’t something the board invents; it’s something the industry recognises and protects. Supporting unity means starting from what connects us, not what divides us.

Unity, easily said, but how any new beekeeping group is led will be the real test.

• We choose humility, patience, and the willingness to put up with each other: Not because everyone is easy to deal with, but because unity requires tolerating differences. We are not all going to think alike, work alike, or communicate alike, but we can choose to stay in the conversation rather than storming off the moment someone challenges us. Humility doesn’t mean you stop caring; it means you stop assuming you are the only one who cares.

• We accept that we won’t always get our own way: A structure that perfectly suits one group will fail the rest. Backing unity means accepting compromise: no group gets everything, but everyone gets enough to move forward. Progress matters more than personal victory.

• We recognise that our well-being is tied to each other’s well-being: When one part of the industry succeeds, we all rise with it. Stronger export markets lift demand for producers. Better honey quality assurance strengthens every brand on the shelf. Effective biosecurity protects every hive in the country. And when beekeepers, packers, marketers, and service providers each play their part well the whole industry becomes more resilient, more respected, and more profitable. Supporting unity means recognising that success is not a zero-sum game, it is a shared gain. What’s good for one sector ultimately strengthens us all.

These four values are simple to say and hard to practice, however they are the conditions unity cannot exist without. If we embrace them, the new constitution becomes the first genuine foundation we have had in years. If we ignore them, no structure will save us. it becomes just another document buried under the weight of old habits.

If We Treat This as the Beginning, We Might Finally Get Somewhere

The constitution will be important. But it will not magically fix the industry, and it will not instantly unify us. What it can do, if we let it, is give us a platform to finally bring the three major parts of the sector into alignment: bee health, market access, and industry representation.

That work will take time. It will take honesty. It will take humility. It will also take a kind of unity we have rarely shown. However, if we treat this moment as the beginning, not the end, then for the first time in a long time we might actually be able to build the industry we keep saying we want.

Darren Bainbridge is the founder and director of MyApiary, management software for beekeeping and honey businesses that spans New Zealand, Australia and North America. He has been at the helm of the business since 2016 and has kept a small amount of beehives since 2012.