Food industry execs break beehive building record

24 October 2017

Fourteen senior women business leaders from across the food industry have successfully built 120 beehives in Tanzania in just three days, eclipsing their 2015 record of 90 hives over three days.

The women were taking part in the Big Beehive Build in the village of Bermi in Babati, Tanzania, in a bid to boost local farmers’ income from honey and raise funds for Farm Africa.

“A 72-hour challenge is the beginning of a local community business,” commented Lorraine Hendle, Managing Director Retail and Manufacturing at William Reed Business Media. “The women, men and children of the Bermi community will all benefit from this resource.”

The all-female team worked alongside beekeepers from Bermi to build the beehives, which will remain in the village and be used to increase the community’s honey production.

To mark the completion of the challenge, the builders and local community held a closing ceremony to officially hand over the beehives. Local politicians, NGO workers, the local community and the businesswomen gathered to reflect on the importance of women’s empowerment and congratulate each on the week’s achievements.

The modern Langstroth beehives (picture left, foreground) built by the group will enhance local women’s beekeeping businesses. Babati’s beekeepers typically use traditional beehives (picture left, background) suspended high in trees. Traditional beehives have long been a barrier for women to engage in beekeeping in this area as it is culturally unacceptable for women to climb trees.

Langstroth hives sit on the ground and make honey production easier and more productive. The women who received the beehives from the first ‘Big Beehive Build’ have harnessed the new technology to build sustainable beekeeping businesses.

Regina Alfred, 45, received five Langstroth hives from Farm Africa, she’s since used the equipment to produce larger quantities of honey. “I can harvest 15-20kg of honey a year from the Langstroth hives, but only get 8-10kg from the traditional hives”, Regina told Farm Africa.

Regina will receive new beehives from ‘The Big Beehive Build 2017’, allowing her to further expand her honey production business and earn more money. The improved income stream will be put towards securing a high-quality education for her youngest child. “The money from this year’s honey harvest will pay her school fees”, says Regina proudly.

Bees are not only producing a brighter future for women in Tanzania, but a greener future for the Nou Forest. The Nou Forest has experienced significant deforestation, as forest loss reduces water supply for local communities, they struggle to grow enough food to eat and turn to felling trees for income to survive – a vicious circle destroying the very resource they need to survive for the long term.

Honey production provides an economically viable alternative to cropland conversion and timber harvesting. “The Big Beehive Build’s premise is beautifully simple: No bees, no trees. No honey, no money”, reflects Jenni Bright, Farm Africa’s Head of Fundraising. “Bees, as pollinators, improve the forest ecosystem, and equally fruit trees improve honey production, which helps local women earn more money.”

After they finished the challenge, the group took the opportunity to travel to the remote village of Erri to revisit the women who received beehives constructed during the Big Beehive Build 2015. During their visit, the businesswomen were impressed to find out that the local community has now started processing and adding value to honey they produce. After receiving training from Farm Africa, the local community started producing a range of products from their honey and beeswax, such as soap and candles.

While the Tanzanian leg of the #BigBeehiveBuild17 is over, the team is still working hard to meet their fundraising target of £80,000. You can help the team reach their target by making a donation. Funds raised go to Farm Africa’s Growing Futures appeal and all donations from UK residents will be doubled by the UK government.