The Louisiana Beekeepers Association Spring Field Day on Saturday, April 30th at Evergreen Honey Co. at (1103 C M Davis Road, Jennings, LA. 70546).  Click Here to Register 

Fifteen overall training sessions will be offered over five time blocks that day. Three concurrent sessions will be occurring at any one time, from which attendees can choose. The training sessions, running about 50 minutes long, are focused on providing information and live demonstrations for new, less-experienced, and intermediate-level beekeepers.

Doors will open for the event at 8 am that Saturday, with initial remarks at 8:45 am and the first sessions at 9:00 am.

Anticipated training sessions at this event include:

Level 1: Beekeeping: Where to Start, Equipment Needs and Apiary Set Up; Honey Bee Basics: Hive and Frame Types; Beekeeping Throughout the Year; Pests and Diseases; Extracting and Bottling Honey

Level 2: Honey Bee Biology: Behavior, Morphology, and Anatomy; Live Hive Inspection Basics: How to Read a Frame and Find the Queen; Basic Varroa Management and Monitoring; Splits for Beginners; Catching and Keeping Swarms

Level 3: Proper Timing for Feeding Bees; Structural Bee Removals; Wax Rendering and Demonstration; Queens Overview: Raising and Re-queening Techniques; Advanced Hive Inspection: Varroa Management and Monitoring

Preregistration March 16 – April 22 with a fee of $30 for enrollment and a lunch that day.   Preregistration will be limited to the first 100 applicants due to classroom size limitations. There will be no on-site registration on April 30, and slots for the training sessions might be filled in advance of April 20.  

A number of school groups and children in the area will also be visiting that day and participating in special youth sessions.  If you have questions about these sessions for children, please contact Jennifer Brown, (601) 493-3447.

Bring your basic protective gear that day for the demonstrations and get ready to learn a lot more about honey bees and beekeeping!

In order to best improve our future events, we ask that you complete this brief survey about your experience.  We are looking for all kinds of feedback as we look forward to seeing you at future events.

You may be asked to sign into our new LBA website in order to fill out the survey.  Thank you for your patience as we build a better member experience.

LBA Conference Survey Link

AHPA-LBA Conference & Trade Show, December 1-3

LBA Annual Conference, December 3-4

Crowne Plaza Baton Rouge

The American Honey Producers Association and the Louisiana Beekeepers Association will have their joint convention at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Baton Rouge.

This is one of the finest beekeeping conference and trade shows in the country.  Exciting speakers with up to date information and research at the conference and the latest technology and supplies at the trade show. We also have an off site activity, banquet and auction, and much more!

Register Here: https://labeekeepers.wildapricot.org/event-4538712/Registration

LBA and USDA-ARS Honey Bee Breeding and Genetics Lab

FALL FIELD DAY - Saturday, November 6th 
Registration: October 1st
PLEASE NOTE THE REGISTRATION, DATE AND LOCATION CHANGE - The Honey Bee Lab operates according to Federal guidelines and are at present not open to the public. In order to ensure that this event will occur regardless of State Covid restrictions, the Lab has agreed to move the location to the Rural Life Museum, 4560 Essen Lane S, Baton Rouge, LA 70808,  ph.#225.765.2437. The Agenda will be very similar to past events, research and LBA talks in the morning, lunch included in the ticket price, and hands-on demonstrations in the hives for the afternoon. Registration will be limited to 150 attendees to ensure Covid spacing if necessary. Mask requirements will be according to State guidelines. Ticket price also will include access to viewing Museum exhibits. 
Registration: October 1st
PLEASE NOTE THE REGISTRATION, DATE AND LOCATION CHANGE - The Honey Bee Lab operates according to Federal guidelines and are at present not open to the public. In order to ensure that this event will occur regardless of State Covid restrictions, the Lab has agreed to move the location to the Rural Life Museum, 4560 Essen Lane S, Baton Rouge, LA 70808,  ph.#225.765.2437. The Agenda will be very similar to past events, research and LBA talks in the morning, lunch included in the ticket price, and hands-on demonstrations in the hives for the afternoon. Registration will be limited to 150 attendees to ensure Covid spacing if necessary. Mask requirements will be according to State guidelines. Ticket price also will include access to viewing Museum exhibits. 

Thank you for visiting the LBA website. Here is a condensed list of what we do and the benefits of becoming a member. Every dollar of your $20 annual membership helps to support the LBA in providing educational opportunities to beekeepers across Louisiana and neighboring states. Thank you for your support!

• Spring Field Day: Beekeeping Education and Hands on Experience
• Fall Field Day: USDA Honey Bee Lab and Research Scientists
• Annual Convention: Multiple Talks for Hobbyist and Commercial Beekeepers
• Involvement in Legislative Issues and LDAF Regulations
• Sponsors Community Outreach Programs
• Board Members Represent the LBA in State, Regional and National Organizations
• Sponsors and Maintains a Website and Newsletter
• Supports Educational Programs and Research Projects at State and National Universities
• Administers Two Annual Honey Bee Scholarship Funds 
• ALL Board Members are Volunteers Receiving No reimbursement For Their Time Serving Members

(June 4, 2021) – Today, the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) unanimously determined that there is a reasonable indication that unfairly traded imports of raw honey from Argentina, Brazil, India, Ukraine, and Vietnam are injuring the U.S. industry producing raw honey.
 
Today’s unanimous decision means that the ITC will continue to investigate the injury inflicted on the U.S. raw honey producers by low-priced imports, and the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) will investigate the extent to which imports from the five countries are being sold below fair value in the U.S. market.  

“Today’s affirmative preliminary determination of injury is incredibly important to American beekeepers,” said Alan Luberda of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, counsel to the U.S. raw honey producers.  “Dumped imports of raw honey from Argentina, Brazil, India, Ukraine, and Vietnam have been underselling domestic raw honey by substantial margins for several years, depressing domestic prices and making it difficult for U.S. beekeepers to earn a living.  This is a critical step in obtaining much-needed relief for U.S. beekeepers.”

Background
 
On April 21, 2021, the American Honey Producers Association (AHPA) and Sioux Honey Association (SHA) filed petitions with the ITC and DOC for relief from dumped imports of raw honey from Argentina, Brazil, India, Ukraine, and Vietnam.  The American Beekeeping Federation (ABF) also supports the trade cases.
 
On May 18, 2021, the DOC published a notice initiating the investigations in the FederalRegister, with estimated dumping margins of 9.75 to 49.44 percent for Argentina, 83.72 percent for Brazil, 27.02 to 88.48 percent for India, 9.49 to 92.94 percent for Ukraine, and 47.56 to 138.23 percent for Vietnam. 
 
DOC is scheduled to issue preliminary determinations of dumping in mid-November, at which point preliminary duties will go into effect, and importers will be obligated to begin paying cash deposits at the time of importation.

McNeese State University is doing its part to help promote the benefits of bees as pollinators through a partnership with local beekeepers and the Harold and Pearl Dripps School of Agricultural Sciences with the introduction of a bee program at the McNeese farm.

The goal is to not only educate McNeese students but also agriculture producers and the community about the benefits of bees as pollinators for food and agriculture crops, the value of wildflowers and plants that provide food for bees and the honey which is produced by the hives, according to Dr. Chip LeMieux, school director.

enrolled in Animal Science 101 are learning about bees in relation to the agriculture industry, including their importance as pollinators and how this impacts the food system and the serious threats currently facing bee populations today.

Farm manager Darrin Goodwin says that not only was the bee program initiated as a way to introduce students to beekeeping, but the school is also excited about potentially applying for research grants and developing a graduate program involving the beehives.

“We understand and appreciate what bees do for our environment and Louisiana has an especially good climate for bees, giving McNeese a unique opportunity to contribute to the research in this area,” says Goodwin.

This, he adds, is especially important as bee populations continue to suffer from ailments like Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), in which worker bees mysteriously abandon their hives, young and queen. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, since CCD first appeared in the United States in 2006, it has contributed to an annual loss of 30 to 60 percent of beehives across the country. “The bee shortage has rippled through the agriculture industry, causing significant economic impacts,” says Goodwin.

Local beekeepers Ronald Ellis, Larry Kebodeaux, Gena Miller and Steve Harrell have donated equipment, hives and over 25 years of combined expertise to get the bee program off the ground. “It’s been my dream for years for McNeese to have a bee program,” says Ellis, who worked with Goodwin to get the program launched.

During the course, students learn from these volunteers about the process of commercial honey production and receiving hands-on experience in harvesting, extracting and bottling honey produced at the farm.

According to Goodwin, honey is now available for sale at the McNeese CAMPP (Center for Advancement of Meat Production and Processing) store in Room 121 of Gayle Hall, along with fresh cuts of beef, sheep and pork processed at the CAMPP facility in Lacassine. For information more information, call the school at 475-5690.

“Proceeds from the honey sales will go towards developing the bee program and paying for supplies,” says Goodwin.

Beekeeper Kebodeaux sees working with the program as an investment for the future of beekeeping. “This is something that benefits everyone. Bees are really struggling now and this new program at McNeese can make a big difference. Maybe research done here in the future will help discover a cure for CCD. It’s a win-win for the bees and McNeese.”

The 57th Annual Louisiana Beekeepers Association Convention is in Sulphur this weekend and several participants including state agriculture officials will tour McNeese’s bee hives at the farm.

https://www.mcneese.edu/events/mcneese-bee-program/