If only a majority of Batswana men became privy to the closely guarded secret that bees’ royal jelly forms an integral component of the sexually invigorating Viagra, high numbers of local bee-hives would be threatened with chauvinistic vandalism.
Given the erotic benefits for sexually incapacitated males from eating this royal jelly, would more people in Botswana venture into bee farming?
According to New Age School Distributors Managing Director, Singh Kukreja, the four to five drones keeping the queen bee company collect the royal jelly from flowers as part of her daily cuisine.
Kukreja, who has developed a passion for bee farming over 20 years, says: “The granular structure of the royal jelly not only forms part of the royal delicacy, but is a rich and unique source of protein edible for human beings, which has been converted into the much-coveted universal aphrodisiac through bio-chemical scientific research. To demonstrate its life propagating potential, by constantly feeding on the royal jelly as daily dietary routine, the queen bee is able to lay eggs in excess of her body weight daily. Commercially harvested and prepared for the US export market, the royal jelly would fetch a mouth-watering P4 000 per kilogram.
“The other bonus from bee farming would involve the collection of pollen grains through the installation of specialized worker beeline traps at strategic entry points on every beehive,” said Kukreja. “An accumulation of the protein rich grains over time would enable farmers to tap into this edible nutritious resource.”
He said that as this knowledge is not common in Botswana, there is need to launch an education and information campaign so that farmers can reap the benefits. Because of lack of knowledge, the focus among local bee farmers goes very little beyond honey collection.
Despite popularization efforts on bee farming, coupled with government encouragement and support, very few young people have ventured into the apiary practice.
Further, government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and the Department of Youth & Culture, has a sizeable amount of sponsorship in waiting for the youth who want to venture into bee farming. With an initial amount of as little as P2000, one can purchase two beehives, smokers and other accessories required for bee farming.
“Two years ago, I held popularizing demonstrations in Selebi Phikwe attended by the Minister of Youth, Sport & Culture, Shaw Kgathi, on the benefits of bee farming and it attracted an overwhelming response from the surrounding populations. The disappointment is that given the positive attitude witnessed in the presence of the Minister, very few have shown the willingness for bee farming,” he said.
Kukreja said Botswana, with its semi-arid climate and floral vegetation, is ideal for bee farming for nine to 10 months a year, with the exclusion of the coldest months, June to July. During the dry winter, there should be no harvesting of honey, because bees may desert and look for alternative nesting sites.
“Bee farmers should provide bees with feed syrup made from boiling parts of sugar in water during the drier months of the year placed near hive sites. Beehives require elevation from the ground of at least one metre and protection against adverse weather conditions usually under the shelter of tree shades preferably in a green setting within easy access of flowering plants and leafy plant varieties. At every juncture, there is need for marauding ant protection to avoid contamination of the hives that can lead to desertion of hives.
“As part of floral plant variety propagation, I have distributed the Basil plant seeds to intending bee farmers, which adds a tantalizing fragrance to the honey. I distribute the honey I harvest free of charge to friends and peers,” he said.
