Residents will be able to keep an eye on the hives using special tracking devices.
Dubai - For an annual fee of Dh2,500 for the first year and Dh1,750 for each year thereafter, residents across the city can adopt a beehive and get 10 kg of honey.
Published: Mon 28 May 2018, 6:39 PM
Residents in the UAE can now adopt a beehive and receive up to 10kg of organic honey annually, straight from the source.
Making a hive haven
Jo Sinclair, a resident of The Sustainable City (TSC) said: "I live within the community and I'm involved with the gardening side of things too, growing food produce, flowers within the complex.
"A message came through on the gardeners Whatsapp group alerting us that TSC was repopulating the community with bees. I guess you could call us a 'green group': we're interested in sustainable practice, so the idea appealed to us.
"Bees are important for the overall ecology of the world, so if we can do something positive and produce crops, harvest landscape that helps bees thrive, then it can only be a good thing."
Stats
> 8 large beehives in TSC
> 100,000 honey bees (apis mellifera) housed in Bee Garden
> 5 wild swarms relocated by residents and Beekeepers Association
> 2,000 residents within TSC community
> 20-35°C are ideal temperatures for beehives to thrive
> 35-50°C temperatures will need close monitoring and feeding of the bees
> 50+°C is detrimental to bees, so the association will insulate and shade the Bee Garden in the hot summers
> 2m high fence along walkpath of Bee Garden so that the bees' flying path is above human height, interference avoided
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For an annual fee of Dh2,500 for the first year and Dh1,750 for each year thereafter, this is yet another move by TSC in educating residents across the city about the importance of bees to the environment.
Though small in size, the bees' existence help supports the growth of trees, flowers, and other plants, which serve as food and shelter for creatures large and small. Sheikh Salem Sultan Al Qasimi, chairman of ANHB, said this programme will continue to "help teach the UAE public about the purity of local honey and its benefits over sugar in the drive against obesity".
In exchange for the fee, those who adopt a hive will receive up to 10kg of honey, education material on the importance of local honey and three visits to the apiary to witness the pollination process during the jujube, acadia and prosopis seasons. Residents will be able to keep an eye on the hives using special tracking devices too.
Speaking to Khaleej Times about its involvement, Karim El Jisr, executive director of TSC, said with its own Bee Garden within the TSC community focusing solely on re-populating honey bees to the area. "This new 'My Hive' programme will additionally allow residents the unique opportunity to enjoy organic products like honey, royal jelly and propolis (bee glue) from their own hive. People love to consume honey, especially in this region, so this is a chance to get it straight from the source."
But aside from the obvious sweet treat, he said the apiary visits and educational material will help people realise the importance of honey bees and their contributions to ecology.
During the announcement, Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, said the 'My Hive' programme is a good example of initiatives rolled out by the private sector to achieve sustainability.
kelly@khaleejtimes.com
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