Beekeepers Keep Up The Fight In Challenging Environment

    The United States Department of Agriculture in the past week released a report showing an increase in the state’s number of bee colonies. Florida, the Southeastern United States’ leader in number of bee colonies at 270,000 this past January, saw 51,000 colonies added during the first quarter of the year, offsetting a loss of 34,000 colonies during the same period.
   The challenge of keeping the number of colonies stable in the state is a full-time job, according to local beekeeper Jerry Latner. And that is just part of the challenge of being in the bee business in 2023 says the man with six decades of experience in the industry.
   “We’re maintaining the numbers,” Latner said this week of beekeepers ability to create new producing colonies, a skill that is necessary due to the lifespan of a bee colony today.
   “Our bees are living about half as long as they used to,” Latner says.
   The churn in the bee colony number comes from a variety of areas, described as ‘stressors’ by the USDA. Varroa mites (28%), other pests and parasites (11%), and pesticides (4.2%) lead the way in Florida. The USDA estimates that nearly 51% of hives were impacted by Varroa mites from April to June of this year alone.
   Overall, total bee colonies in Florida are down from 295,000 in 2022. Throughout the region, which includes Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina, colony numbers fell to 2,678,250 from 2,875,670. However, total colony numbers rose in Alabama and Georgia.
   Bees that don’t live as long don’t produce as much honey, and Latner says production is down by about half from historic levels.
   "You're lucky to get 50 pounds of honey out of a colony today," Latner said Monday. "It used to be 100 pounds."
   Beyond mites and pesticides are other problems facing honey production, including loss of appropriate habitat.
   “Your primary crop is gone,” Later said, referring to the collapse of the citrus industry in Florida. Additionally, housing growth continues to eliminate more natural plant life that bees could source to make honey.
   The forage just isn’t there.”
   Instead, beekeepers ship their hives throughout the country to areas where they can be of agricultural use.
   “Pollination is the number one thing keeping it going.”
   Indeed, with produce requiring pollination, beekeepers are finding revenue in supplying hives to fruit and vegetable growers throughout the country.
   Beekeeping has been a long tradition in North Lake County, and many continue today, though Latner says the economics of the industry require ever larger numbers of colonies if an operation is to be a profitable business.
   "Bigger beekeepers are getting bigger. Some have anywhere from 5-20,000 colonies." While Latner says there are 'quite a few' beekeeping operations in the area, he fears for the future as he sees few young people taking an interest in the industry.
   "There are not many young people who want to do this now," he says, noting that in the years to come, corporate beekeeping could grow as large farming operations work to secure pollination for their products.