The Welsh Beekeepers’ Association (WBKA) is the national support organisation for beekeepers in Wales. It is a registered charity (number 509929) managed by a board of trustees supported by various officers, all of whom are volunteers.
Founded in 1943, WBKA is the umbrella organisation for 19 local associations across Wales. Representatives of these 19 associations, and specialist members, form the WBKA Council which meets three times a year.
The WBKA works to support its member associations, specialist and individual members by:
developing co-operation amongst beekeepers and other bodies, including Welsh Government and other national associations and bodies
improving the standard of bee husbandry by supporting the beekeeping education system in the UK.
We hope our website gives you an insight into the ways in which we support the objects of the WBKA as set out in our Constitution – the encouragement, improvement, advancement and promotion of beekeeping to provide a benefit to the public and the environment throughout Wales.
Come and see us at the RWAS Smallholding and Countryside Festival.
Royal Welsh Showground,
Llanelwedd, Builth Wells,
Powys. LD2 3SY.
Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st May 2023.
WBKA Webinars
Currently we are are arranging at least one webinar each month. Our webinars are free and open to all.
Join us for a webinar on Thursday 29th June 2023 at 7.30 – 9.00 PM BST .
Asian Hornet – Nigel Semmence
Nigel started beekeeping whilst he was a teenager in Norfolk learning from his uncle and grandfather who were both bee farmers. After university he worked in scientific sales before joining the Oxford Bee Company where he enjoyed three years on pollination projects with solitary bees and commuted between the UK and California. In 2009 Nigel joined the National Bee Unit (NBU) as Regional Bee Inspector (RBI) for Southern region running a team of seven Seasonal Bee Inspectors (SBIs). In 2015 Nigel became the Contingency planning and science officer for the NBU with responsibility for developing contingency plans for exotic pests and diseases of honeybees such as the Asian hornet, Small hive beetle and Tropilaelaps mites. This was just in time for the first Asian hornet incursion in 2016 and the NBU has learnt much since then on how to deal with Asian hornets as well as how to run contingency responses.
Nigel’s talk will cover the current situation with Asian hornet in Europe and the UK, focusing on the contingency response by the NBU and how beekeepers can help.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
News
Watch the latest Video from Anaphylaxis UK on Bee and Wasp stings.
New!
Apiary and Brood Inspections
Three videos by Regional Bee Inspector Frank Gellatly, Gwenyn Gruffydd and Black Mountain Honey.
Frank Gellatly, Regional Bee Inspector for Wales has joined with Gwenyn Gruffydd and Black Mountain Honey to produce three useful and interesting YouTube videos. We thank Frank and both of these businesses for granting us permission to share the links to these very informative videos.
(Please note that the WBKA do not endorse any particular products or suppliers mentioned in these videos, or in any of the advertisements which appear via YouTube).
Click on the videos to view.
The Healthy Bees Plan 2030
has recently been published by DEFRA to cover Wales and England for the next 10 years.
The Plan is available below.
The Asian Hornet in the UK
The scientific journal Nature has published a detailed report on the sightings of Asian Hornets in the UK from 2016 to 2019 and the follow-up investigations. You can read it below.
Ulster BKA Webinars
Jan 2022
Members may be interested in the Ulster Beekeepers’ Association flyer of webinars starting in January 2022. Registration details are below.
Scottish BKA Webinars
2021 -2022
Here are some past webinars from the Scottish Beekeepers Association that you might find interesting.
Click on the button below.
QUICK LINKS
