Gyeonggi province has been working diligently with municipal governments and beekeepers’ associations to raise queen bees. (Image courtesy of Gyeonggi Province)
UIJONGBU, May 31 (Korea Bizwire) – In a first for a South Korean provincial government, Gyeonggi Province announced on May 30 that it will distribute 10,000 queen bees starting in June to help beekeepers recover from winter bee colony losses.
Since March, the province has been working diligently with municipal governments and beekeepers’ associations to raise queen bees. Through the efforts of 65 designated queen bee breeding farms, they have successfully multiplied 5,000 queen bees so far and aim to reach the 10,000 target by next month.
The queen bee support program involves pre-raising 150 queen bees per designated breeding farm in each municipality, which will then be supplied at a discounted price from June onwards to help restore dwindling bee populations.
A majority of Gyeonggi’s beekeepers have faced difficulties due to declining bee colony numbers that began in the latter half of 2021. This has led to soaring queen bee costs and decreased honey production volumes.
The number of bee colonies in Gyeonggi has been steadily declining, from 253,043 colonies in 2020 to 208,702 colonies last year, following the onset of winter bee losses.
“The queen bee distribution project is not only to help beekeepers recover from damage but also an overarching support measure to protect honeybees, which are crucial pollinating insects, and maintain the natural ecosystem,” said Lee Kang-young, the head of Gyeonggi’s livestock policy department.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
