110 Billion Won Support for Bee Stocking Fees and Equipment to Affected Farms
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] Recently, the nationwide disappearance of honeybees has brought renewed attention to the public value of the beekeeping industry, including honeybees' contribution to agricultural production through pollination and the maintenance of forest ecosystems.
Seventy-one percent of the world's top 100 major crops depend on honeybee pollination, and the overall ecosystem conservation effect of these honeybees is said to be worth 70 trillion won.
This indicates that honeybees play a crucial role in maintaining and preserving biodiversity in ecosystems.
The honeybee disappearance, which began in January in the southern regions (Jeonnam, Gyeongnam) and spread nationwide, has also affected Gyeongbuk?the region with the largest beekeeping scale (20% of the national total)?resulting in damage to 76,000 colonies (13% of the total) in this incident.
This survey targeted beekeepers with more than 30 colonies whose damage exceeded 50%, so the actual damage is expected to be around 20-30%.
Gyeongsangbuk-do Province has urgently allocated a total project budget of 11 billion won, including 6.6 billion won in contingency funds (province and city/county), to support beekeepers with expenses for bee stocking and immune boosters and other equipment.
Additionally, to stabilize the management of honeybee disappearance-affected farms, Gyeongbuk Province has urgently injected 5 billion won (loan) from the Agricultural and Fisheries Rural Development Fund and prepared active support measures for honeybee disappearance damages.
To foster the local beekeeping industry as a sustainable industry, a ‘Comprehensive Plan for the Development of the Gyeongbuk Beekeeping Industry’ will be established and implemented.
This is also a follow-up measure to the enactment of the Ordinance on the Development and Support of the Gyeongbuk Beekeeping Industry (September 2020).
This five-year comprehensive plan sets out four major strategies: stabilizing the production base, breed improvement and pest management, encouragement of nectar source creation, and fostering a native honey brand. From this year through 2026, a total of 82 billion won will be intensively invested in 21 projects over five years.
First, to stabilize the production base of the beekeeping industry, the distribution of modernized beekeeping equipment will be expanded, and support will be provided for the premium productization of beekeeping by-products such as propolis and royal jelly.
Support will also be given for honey concentration and feed manufacturing facilities to produce high-quality honey.
Next, with the honeybee disappearance phenomenon highlighting the need for honeybee improvement and pest management, a project to distribute Jangwon bees, a government-promoted honeybee breed, will be promoted.
Jangwon bees are known to have over 30% higher nectar collection ability than ordinary honeybees and excellent resistance to diseases.
To strengthen pest control technology for beekeepers, technical education and advanced farm visits by the Beekeeping Association will be supported.
Following this, policies to encourage the creation of nectar sources will be promoted.
When supporting beekeeping equipment, incentives will be given based on the nectar source creation performance of beekeepers and city/county governments to actively induce nectar source creation.
Also, through cooperation with the Beekeeping Association, a ‘Nectar Tree Planting Campaign’ will be promoted, where beekeepers plant more than 50 nectar trees annually themselves, creating an atmosphere where farmers and administration work together on nectar source creation.
Finally, based on Gyeongbuk’s clean natural environment, a high-quality native honey brand will be developed and fostered to establish a stable income base for native bee farms.
A brand development service will be conducted to verify the efficacy of native honey and study differentiation and quality enhancement methods compared to other cities and provinces.
Additionally, unique premium packaging design for the brand will be developed and distributed, and the expansion of traditional beehive support will enhance the brand image.
Governor Lee Cheol-woo said, “We have prepared emergency support measures to overcome this unprecedented honeybee disappearance incident, and we have also established a long-term comprehensive plan for sustainable beekeeping industry development. We will spare no administrative role and support to ensure that Gyeongbuk can develop into a leading region for the national beekeeping industry.”
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