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Status
Received: on time
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Income
£4.8K
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Spending
£6.0K
Public benefits
Honeybees are key pollinators in the global food chain. Without honeybees and other pollinating insects, humanity would face grave food shortages. As there are no feral honeybees, INIB activities Directly serve to advance environmental improvement by the conservation and promotion of honeybees as a species and thereby the pollination of all crops
and native plants in Northern Ireland, I for example, the apple orchards of Armagh making them of huge economic and environmental importance in Northern Ireland . One bee can visit up to 5,000 flowers in a single day. To make one pound of honey a hive of bees must travel over 55,000 miles and visit two million flowers! The INIB has contributed to the All Ireland Draft Pollinators Strategy, which is an extensive document contributed to by Governments on both sides of the border and many interested organisations. This strategy, due to be published in the autumn of 2015, will form the basis of a co-ordinated approach throughout the island to promote and protect honey bees and pollination. INIB members sit on DARD committees which is currently looking at the Strategy on the Sustainability of the Honeybee and related matters. INIB activities encourage people to take up or to support beekeeping. In turn, this helps secure pollination of foodstuffs and so benefits and the environment and the Public. The majority of the general public know very little about bees and swarms often cause worry and stress if they swarm into inconvenient locations i.e. houses, gardens, chimney stacks etc. INIB provides information about swarms and swarming and it provides a list of designated and registered Swarm Collectors who are able and prepared to move or collect a swarm. This is preferable to having the swarm destroyed or ignored, which are the only choices most councils in Northern Ireland offer. Further direct benefits are an increased awareness of honey bees, beekeeping and methods of management, bee diseases and pests amongst the public, amongst our beekeeping and non beekeeping membership and amongst the wider beekeeping community throughout Northern Ireland. By way of our workshops we continue to teach beekeepers the craft of beekeeping in its widest all-Ireland Pollinators Strategy sense, encompassing the preparation of honey and hive products. These are exhibited in Honey Shows. Without these honey shows, these skills would die and the standards of honey and hive products available to the public would decline. It is of note that our membership includes several qualified Honey Judges. Their qualifications and accreditation have been gained through INIB courses. In 2014 we ran a Honey Show Stewards workshop. In 2015 we already have scheduled a mead making workshop, prepared honey for shows demonstration, a microscopy course (for identifying bee diseases) and a fund raising MasterClass cooking with Honey by artisan baker and beekeeper Robert Ditty and Chef Michael Young MBE.
... [more] [less]What your organisation does
The Institute of Northern Ireland Beekeepers is a charitable organisation committed to educating and informing the public about beekeeping. Each year the INIB runs a programme of events to help inform and educate people about honeybees and the craft of beekeeping. The highlight of the INIB calendar is the Annual Conference and Honey Show which
seeks to improve the knowledge of and standards of beekeeping in Northern Ireland. INIB contributes to the All Ireland Pollinator Strategy and the DAERA Strategy on the Sustainability of the Honeybee and related matters. Our membership has increased consistently year on year and includes non-beekeeping members. This demonstrates that we are reaching and informing the wider non-beekeeping public. Beekeepers and the public are increasingly aware of threats to bees from the environment, pests and disease. This media focus means beekeepers and the public have a thirst for knowledge which we strive to satisfy through educational events and working with other shared interest organisations including The Ulster Beekeepers Association, The Native Irish Honey Bee Association and The British Beekeepers Association. INIB continues to invite and facilitate world renowned experts in beekeeping and honeybee diseases to educate and entertain local beekeepers in addition to organising 'Beginners' events and provision of beekeeping mentors throughout Northern Ireland.
... [more] [less]The charity’s classifications
- The advancement of education
- The advancement of environmental protection or improvement
- The advancement of animal welfare
Who the charity helps
- Adult training
- General public
How the charity works
- Advice/advocacy/information
- Education/training
- Environment/sustainable development/conservation
