AUSTRALIAN honeybee businesses continue to struggle despite an improvement in income over the past six years, according to a new survey released today.
Increased revenue from pollination services and higher honey prices have largely helped apiarists’ financial performance, according to the ABARE Australian Honeybee Industry Survey, which was commissioned by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.
ABARE executive director Phillip Glyde said while the "average cash operating surplus of honeybee businesses has risen in real terms by 40 per cent between 2000-01 and 2006-07, their rate of return on capital invested remained negative at -3 per cent on average."
The report presents results from a survey conducted by ABARE in June 2008, of 135 beekeepers and presents estimates of production, socioeconomic and financial characteristics of honeybee businesses during 2006-07.
"Financial performance was substantially better for larger beekeeping businesses - operating more than 1000 hives - which achieved a rate of return to capital of almost 5 per cent, indicating economies of scale," Mr Glyde said.
RIRDC Managing Director, Peter O’Brien, said an estimated 28 per cent of honeybee businesses provide pollination services, but that this was likely to grow, with 36 per cent of beekeepers expecting to commence or expand pollination services in the future.
"Increasingly beekeepers are not just producers of honey, but providers of pollination services that help sustain agriculture and feed the nation."
"Despite improved performance, the industry is facing a number of challenges including drought, pest and diseases, access to public land and meeting future pollination demand," said Dr O’Brien.
"Ensuring there are adequate levels of pollination services to meet future demand in the horticulture sector is of particular concern at the moment," Dr O’Brien concluded.
The ABARE survey of beekeepers forms part of the RIRDC Honeybee R&D program, which aims to increase profitability of Australian honeybee businesses.
The report, Australian Honeybee Industry Survey 2006-07, can be downloaded from the RIRDC website www.rirdc.gov.au
