Embrace bee keeping, Mumias farmers told

Embrace bee keeping, Mumias farmers told

Farmers from Mumias Constituency have been urged to embrace the art of bee keeping so as to boost their living standards.

Speaking to residents of Bukaya location in Etenje Hall the livestock officer for Etenje and Musanda ward Stanley Okanga wanted farmers not to fear the practice of bee keeping adding on that it does not require much costs.

“Many farmers fear bee keeping practice, I urge you all to come together and practice this type of farming because it will be one way of curbing with the problem of lack of jobs among youths of this region,” said Mr. Okanga

Moses Wesonga an expert of bee keeping in that region said that farmers need to move ahead through bee keeping and embrace it as other farming practices.

“Bee keeping will enable us to move ahead even have a factory of manufacturing products that come from honey. For instance perfume and soap even honey is medicine own its own,” reiterated Wesonga.

Farmers who practice bee keeping said that they have benefited a lot in bee keeping.

“Bee keeping has helped me pay school fees for my children and use it as sugar, “stated one of the farmers.

There are many advantages that come with bee keeping that youths can engage in the farming; bee keeping venture requires a small piece of land that does not have to be fertile.

The capital required to start the venture is low compared to other farm enterprises. For example it does not require natural resources such as space, light, moisture and soil fertility.

Bee keeping requires minimal labour such as inspection and harvesting, which can be done over a stretch of time.

Unlike the popular belief that bees are only used to obtain honey and wax, a creative farmer can obtain over 10 income-generating products from bee keeping.

Bees are good pollinators of plants and play a huge role in bio-diversity and improvement of crop yields thus a farmer who has a passion in crops can introduce bee keeping to help in the yields such us beans, maize, groundnuts that are grown by people from the Western region.