Bee Farmers apprenticeship scheme

[Chrisfnvs]

I would suggest there are far more possibility's in farming for those leaving agricultural collage in this country than in bee farming as there are far more farms which have a wide range of positions available, no one would suggest someone leaving collage would go straight out and buy a farm, that is just not going to happen, unless they win the lottery that is, as mention a wide range of positions are available to start with and then work their way up or become a tenant farmer, not such possibility`s in bee farming i would suggest, i would further suggest bee farmers are in a unusual position in that mostly we place are equipment (expensive hives) on other peoples land which makes it hard to obtain insurance cover unless you are lucky enough to find a farmer that will add you to their cover, something i have not been able to find so far, as for mechanics i would suggest they would have a much better business plan available to them as they could forecast the income much more accurately than bee farmers as their income could be calculated over a 12 month period with some degree of accuracy making a business loan more viable, chasing honey is hard work with no guarantee of a crop at the end of the season,which is only 6 months long, unless you sell queens, nuc`s and make hives which will spreed the rick a little, i think the BFA could do more in terms of getting better deals from the manufacturers for the newly qualified and a better relationship the the NFU to give access to sites, i am not knocking the scheme i just feel it was rolled out before any support being put in place.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I would suggest there are far more possibility's in farming for those leaving agricultural collage in this country then in bee farming

By that yardstick we should stop apprenticeships for other minority trades then. Cabinet makers goldsmiths glass blowers. The list goes on and on

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[Chrisfnvs]

By that yardstick we should stop apprenticeships for other minority trades then. Cabinet makers goldsmiths glass blowers. The list goes on and on

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Why ?

 

[Hivemaker.]

By that yardstick we should stop apprenticeships for other minority trades then.

Might seem a bit old fashioned, but I think there should be a lot more apprenticeships, and a lot less staying on at school until nearly retirement age.

 

[Gaz1]

Might seem a bit old fashioned, but I think there should be a lot more apprenticeships, and a lot less staying on at school until nearly retirement age.

Unfortunately is now about what and how much you can put on your CV have kids coming on site these day that on paper are the most qualified but out in the real world are completely lost

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Why ?

Just following the same reason you seem to dismiss the BFA scheme

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[jenkinsbrynmair]

Might seem a bit old fashioned, but I think there should be a lot more apprenticeships, and a lot less staying on at school until nearly retirement age.

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[REDWOOD]

Train them at 16 or 17 when their brains are like sponges and you can mould them to your way of thinking.

 

[foghornleghorn]

I would suggest there are far more possibility's in farming for those leaving agricultural collage in this country than in bee farming as there are far more farms which have a wide range of positions available, no one would suggest someone leaving collage would go straight out and buy a farm, that is just not going to happen, unless they win the lottery that is, as mention a wide range of positions are available to start with and then work their way up or become a tenant farmer, not such possibility`s in bee farming i would suggest, i would further suggest bee farmers are in a unusual position in that mostly we place are equipment (expensive hives) on other peoples land which makes it hard to obtain insurance cover unless you are lucky enough to find a farmer that will add you to their cover, something i have not been able to find so far, as for mechanics i would suggest they would have a much better business plan available to them as they could forecast the income much more accurately than bee farmers as their income could be calculated over a 12 month period with some degree of accuracy making a business loan more viable, chasing honey is hard work with no guarantee of a crop at the end of the season,which is only 6 months long, unless you sell queens, nuc`s and make hives which will spreed the rick a little, i think the BFA could do more in terms of getting better deals from the manufacturers for the newly qualified and a better relationship the the NFU to give access to sites, i am not knocking the scheme i just feel it was rolled out before any support being put in place.

Bee farming is very easy to start from scratch compared to any of beef,sheep,dairy or crop farming. Less than 50k should be able to get someone up and running with a decent few hives and build from there compared to well over a 100k on stock alone before machinery land etc

 

[Plenty of honey]

Might seem a bit old fashioned, but I think there should be a lot more apprenticeships, and a lot less staying on at school until nearly retirement age.

No, totally agree, Not enough apprenticeships. The trouble is, most kids all want to go to university, get a degree (mostly about as much use as a CSE grade 9 in door opening) then walk in to a 40 K a year job in the year after they leave Uni.
This whole thing infuriates me intensely. Far too many kids go to university when their Better off getting a job in the real world and before i get roasted about there being no jobs, there is! you just have to want to get one!!!

 

[Haughton Honey]

Never a truer word spoken Plenty.

If it's of interest, HH are currently working with the BFA to sponsor a bee farming apprentice scheme set up specifically for ex-forces personnel (a cause dear to my heart).




QUOTE=Plenty of honey;564134]
No, totally agree, Not enough apprenticeships. The trouble is, most kids all want to go to university, get a degree (mostly about as much use as a CSE grade 9 in door opening) then walk in to a 40 K a year job in the year after they leave Uni.
This whole thing infuriates me intensely. Far too many kids go to university when their Better off getting a job in the real world and before i get roasted about there being no jobs, there is! you just have to want to get one!!![/QUOTE]

 

[user 6228]

No, totally agree, Not enough apprenticeships. The trouble is, most kids all want to go to university, get a degree (mostly about as much use as a CSE grade 9 in door opening) then walk in to a 40 K a year job in the year after they leave Uni.
This whole thing infuriates me intensely. Far too many kids go to university when their Better off getting a job in the real world and before i get roasted about there being no jobs, there is! you just have to want to get one!!!

Some aren’t ready for A levels and Uni any time.
Some aren’t ready at 18.

The world is not as easy for the young as it was in the 70's, filling them up with expectations that are so unlikely to be fulfilled is cruel.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

No, totally agree, Not enough apprenticeships. The trouble is, most kids all want to go to university, get a degree (mostly about as much use as a CSE grade 9 in door opening) then walk in to a 40 K a year job in the year after they leave Uni.

Either that, or they expect to win X factor/Britain's got no talent whatever (even though they have a voice like a cracked pisspot) and become celebrities

This whole thing infuriates me intensely. Far too many kids go to university when their Better off getting a job in the real world and before i get roasted about there being no jobs, there is! you just have to want to get one!!!

 

[sipa]

filling them up with expectations that are so unlikely to be fulfilled is cruel.

Apprenticeships are a great opportunity for young people to learn skills, that's a given.

However, as I understand it the BFA scheme is all about bringing newcomers to the craft and creating new bee farmers to fill the gap as the old codgers die off and to increase overall numbers of beefarmers.

Unless these poor sops, sorry apprentices, are going to inherit an established business or have substantial capital at their disposal, earning a decent living from bees is just a pipe dream.

 

[BeeJayBee]

Some aren’t ready for A levels and Uni any time.
Some aren’t ready at 18.

The world is not as easy for the young as it was in the 70's, filling them up with expectations that are so unlikely to be fulfilled is cruel.

True, but there are generally more apprenticeships these days and some include training that leads to an HND - which is worth a lot more than some degrees.

The thing about the BFA apprenticships seems to be that, so far, I think most of them have been taken by family members who have some future job prospects. If the scheme expands to other young people then where will they find work? There don't seem to be enough bee farmers to employ them full time, and starting from scratch at age 18-21 doesn't make financial sense because outlay would massively exceed income - so they have to have another job to make enough money to live, at least until they have so many hives that they don't have time for anything else.

Then, if our area is anything to go by, suitable apiary sites and willing landowners are few and far between - or sites have been claimed by one particular BF who then doesn't use them except for storing empty hives.

 

[Chrisfnvs]

Just for the records i am totally behind apprenticeships in the country, one of my concerns was for the future of these apprentices when they have qualified what do they do then, i see in a post that a mere 50k would set them up ! i would ask where does that come form, i am not sure a bank would lend them that amount on a risky business plan and at such a young age with no collateral, as mentioned before it seems to only benefit established large bee farmers employing family members, i would like to fast forward a few years to find out how things turn out, will they be bee farmers in their own right competing with the family business, running the family business, just working for the family business on minimum wages or left the industry altogether which would be a great shame, i think that one of the biggest operations in the UK not using this scheme speaks volumes

 

[Hivemaker.]

i would like to fast forward a few years to find out how things turn out, will they be bee farmers in their own right competing with the family business

No need to fast forward here...already started happening, but that is a good thing.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Less than 50k should be able to get someone up and running with a decent few hives and build from there

No need to borrow any money or get any handouts, if built up slowly over a few years.

 

[td4bees]

Apprenticeships are a great opportunity for young people to learn skills, that's a given.

However, as I understand it the BFA scheme is all about bringing newcomers to the craft and creating new bee farmers to fill the gap as the old codgers die off and to increase overall numbers of beefarmers.

Unless these poor sops, sorry apprentices, are going to inherit an established business or have substantial capital at their disposal, earning a decent living from bees is just a pipe dream.

 

[Karol]

Well I guess a beekeeping degree could be established at Uni. The graduates would be saddled with a £50k debt and that would really ensure that knowledge was passed on.