A highly experienced American apiarist has conceded informing people about the important role of honeybees can be challenging at times.
Hodgie Holgersen – a master beekeeper from Virginia – told broadcaster CBN: “To educate not only beekeepers but the non-beekeeping public. And educating the non-beekeeping public is a daunting task because most people are afraid of honeybees.”
Hodgie got into apiculture as a child after reading a book on honeybees. Today, he manages around 100 hives and is one of the over 140 Tidewater Beekeepers Association members.
His master beekeeper grade is the second-highest certificate on the American four-scale apiculture management skills evaluation system.
Asked to evaluate the impact of pollination in his home state, Hodgie explained: “Virginia’s number one economy is agriculture. Virginia farmers raise 100 different commercially grown crops that they would not be able to raise if it wasn’t for a simple bug. That kind of puts things in perspective.”
With a global market share of four per cent, the United States is one of the world’s 10 leading producers of honey. The annual per capita consumption of the product in the United States ranges between 0.9 and 1.4 kilogrammes (1 and 3 lbs).
