Beekeeping in the tropics

How to start beekeeping in tropical areas
Absconding of honeybee colonies and its prevention

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In the tropics beekeeping is potentially a good source of income. The main product is honey, but beeswax, beemilk (royal jelly), pollen, propolis and bee venom are also harvested. Per capita consumption of honey in tropical countries is low, on average less than 100 grammes annually. However, honey is often used as medicine or as a ceremonial food rather than as a (luxury) bread spread. The use of honey as a sweetener and as health food was boosted by the introduction of beekeeping methods with superimposed honey chambers, generating higher yields with light coloured and soft tasting honeys.

Honeybees forage on nectar and pollen. When visiting flowers they pollinate them. Pollination can also be seen as a 'product' as it increases seed yield of natural vegetation and crops. In some countries the crop owner pays for this service to the beekeeper. Bees also collect resins, gums and plant waxes. These are mixed by the bees with beeswax and saliva and thus made into propolis.

A group of species related to the honeybee are the stingless bees or Meliponini, which are found in the tropics and subtropics. They live in colonies and also forage on nectar and pollen. They can be kept by beekeepers for their highly valued though small quantities of honey. They are good pollinators for a large number of plant species.

Beekeeping can play an important role in conservation of forest and natural vegetation. By adding an economically interesting product like honey, non-wood production can be increased to a level which can compete with other land use. Tree orchards, waste land, gardens and compounds can be used for beekeeping as a location for an apiary and for their nectar production.