The TBA website has a new feature that we’re super excited about and it requires member participation. You can now update your profile (yes, you must login to the TBA webpage) to include shared interests as well as services you provide as a beekeeper. This update will allow us to provide more relevant information to you as well as provide searchable member profiles for fellow beekeepers or even public mapping for professional services related to beekeeping.
We have recently created some shared interest group definitions with the goal of providing well rounded education and better understanding our membership. One thing we know is that while we all may keep bees a little differently or hold different standards within our apiary, we all care about the overall health of the honey bees in our apiary as well as within the industry.
Here is a list of our current Shared Interest Group definitions – our goal is to use these groups to solicit and provide both targeted feedback and information as it applies to these groups.
- Professional Beekeeper – Beekeeper that makes a living in the bee industry.
- Commercial Pollination – Beekeepers who move colonies – either locally or regionally to pollinate crops. Topics could include issues with logistics, licensing, insurance, broker involvement, etc. Could include beekeepers who don’t yet do commercial contracts but would like to in the future – maybe leads to smaller beekeepers pooling hives to provide pollination services. Managing multiple apiaries.
- Honey Producers – Beekeepers whose main focus is producing honey – for selling themselves or to Packers for resale.
- Honey Packers – Beekeepers licensed as a “producer” with the State of Texas, buys honey from other beekeepers for bottling and selling; and those interested.
- Queen Rearing – Beekeepers who raise and sell Queens and those who would like to raise and sell Queens.
- Package & Nuc Producers – Any beekeepers who sell packages and Nucs and those who want to learn/begin producing/selling bees.
- Professional Bee Removal – Beekeepers who do removals and those who want to learn/begin doing cutouts and removals.
- Small-Scale Beekeeping – Beekeepers with less than 20 hives. Often urban or backyard beekeepers.
- Urban Beekeeping – Beekeepers in urban settings – city and HOA regulations, appeasing neighbors, liability concerns, etc.
- Pollinator Advocacy – persons interested in active support for protecting pollinators through legislation limiting chemicals harmful to pollinators, educating others on the harm chemicals can do to pollinators,
- Natural Beekeeping – Beekeepers who practice IPM but stop at chemical or synthetic treatments.
- Bee Researcher – Scientists, students, and researchers that seek to better understand bees and provide valuable information to the bee industry and beekeepers through the scientific process.
- Growers & Farmers – stakeholders in the bee industry who care about colony help and are seeking better practices to improve overall bee health on their land.
Please take the time to fill out and edit Your Profile page and select any relevant interests as well as the services you provide if applicable.