A BEEKEEPING program that propagates indigenous honeybee breeds now gives livelihood to Mangyans of Occidental Mindoro and will soon become an export commodity, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said.

DA Undersecretary Deogracias Victor B. Savellano said the program offers huge opportunities as an income earner for farmers with honey’s medicinal and pharmaceutical properties.

Savellano added that the DA will explore budget sources for the program through a Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) program.

The products of beekeeping–honey, pollen, propolis–are turned into antibacterial soap, massage oil, lip balm, shampoo and other products.

Locally-processed bee products have reportedly been reaching prominent export markets—particularly the royalties of England, according to the DA official.

Under its program, the DA will accredit bee suppliers as part of developing the local industry. This accreditation policy will get rid of smugglers of queen bees which are the bees for reproduction.

“Queen bee smuggling has been destroying our local industry,” he said

Savellano disclosed that the DA will partner with the University of the Philippines-Los Banos (UPLB) on a commercial system, yet community-based program on beekeeping.

Dr. Cleofas M. Cervancio, UPLB project leader, said the UPLB will come up with a bee roadmap whose aim is to tap the export market.

So far, the UPLB project has been benefitting rural communities. This includes Muslim communities in Lanao del Norte and Mangyans in Victoria, Occidental Mindoro.

Bee farms are now also being developed as agriculture tourism sites. One such site is the Balay Buhay sa Uma Bee Farm in Bulusan, Sorsogon. It is accredited by the Department of Tourism.

UPLB has been developing technologies using native bees, particularly stingless bees, in order to raise crop yield and sustain biodiversity.

The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has identified the bee program as the National Training Center for beekeeping. Training is on beekeeping, bee colony health, management and bee pasture development.

The UPLB Bee Program also participates in establishing Standards for Tropical Honey and Beekeeping Practices in the Asia Pacific Region.

The TESDA program features low-cost rearing technology for bees and the establishment of bee pasture and sanctuary in an agroecosystem.

It developed a policy paper on Standards for Tropical Honey ratified by the Asian Apicultural Association.

These are other UPLB-developed bee technologies: Use of stingless bees for pollination; how to harvest honey, pollen, and propolis from stingless bees; propagation of stingless bees using coconut shells; and harvesting honey from giant honeybees.