"M & T Weatherhead" wondered:
> where the finances are coming from to facilitate this
> increase.  Usually honey is produced by the rural people in these type
> of countries and as such would not have a great deal of money to expand.
>
> I know that often Apis cerana is easily kept but it will still require
> material to house the bees and "clean" facilities to process the honey.

Finance is available and little is required to produce hives for cerana -
they are very simple and roughly made (cerana does not seem to built much
brace or use much propolis, so hives and frames can be quite crudely made).
I met one young man in Kerala who was from a very poor family, but is now
running a very successful business producing around 10 tonnes of honey a
year as well as running 1250 colonies just to stock hives for sale.  He also
manufactures and sells beekeeping equipment.

Peter Edwards
[log in to unmask]
www.stratford-upon-avon.freeserve.co.uk/

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