SCBIA - SKBBV

Southern Cape Bee Industry Association
Suid-Kaap Byebedryf Vereniging

“Every human being should show the greatest interest in beekeeping because our lives depend upon it”

– Rudolf Steiner

About Us

Southern Cape Bee Industry Association (SCBIA)

We are a group of dedicated beekeepers who are passionate about promoting ethical, professional, and sustainable beekeeping practices in the Southern Cape Province of South Africa.

The Beekeeping (or Apiculture) sector is, without doubt, a vital component of the agricultural industry as a whole. Unfortunately it’s also vulnerable, because bees are under threat of extinction due to a number of reasons, like the climate change, use of pesticides, habitat loss, and more.

We welcome beekeepers/apiarists of all levels of experience and look forward to sharing our knowledge and expertise with our members.

“The beekeeper must first of all be a bee lover or he will never succeed” – Tickner Edwardes

Our Activities

We provide specialised information, training and advice to our members in the following fields

Member Benefits

BECOME A MEMBER

We represent our members in the Southern Cape Region.
Our Association communicates industrial information and decisions to our members.
Furthermore we advertise Bee farmers and Bee related businesses on the Website.
We also offer training to our members by means of field days.
SCBIA liaises and communicates with other beekeepers in the area.
We are affiliated with SABIO where we represent our members.

Some Fun Facts

"Bee" Part of the Bee Lovers

Bees are important pollinators and play a crucial role in our food supply. It is estimated that one-third of the food we eat relies on pollination by bees.
South Africa is home to two sub-species or races of honeybees which are indigenous to the country: Apis mellifera Scutellata (or “African Honey bee”) and Apis mellifera Capensis (or “Cape Honey bee”).
There are over 20,000 species of bees in the world, with about 4,000 species found in the United States alone.
Honeybees can fly up to 24 km per hour, and their wings beat about 200 times per second.
Bees communicate with each other through a dance known as the “waggle dance.” This dance tells other bees where to find nectar and pollen.
A single honeybee can visit up to 2,000 flowers in a day.
Male bees (also known as drones) do not have stingers and do not gather nectar or pollen. Their sole purpose is to mate with the queen.
Bees have five eyes, with two large compound eyes and three smaller simple eyes on the top of their heads.
Bees are able to recognize human faces, and have been trained to detect explosives and other substances.
Honeybees can navigate using the sun, and can also detect the polarization of sunlight to navigate on cloudy days.
Bees have been producing honey for millions of years, with evidence of honey being found in ancient Egyptian tombs.

Learn More About "Bees

"Bee Magic at McGregor Magic"

Inside A Billionaire Bee Colony

Stewart and Lynda Resnick’s Wonderful Co. is among a handful of honey bee farms responsible for the pollination of a third of Americans’ food. But the real buzz is how they rent them out…Read more