Bee Aware Month Launched By Associate Minister For Agriculture Jo Luxton At Te Aro School

Associate Agriculture Minister, Hon Jo Luxton, has officially launched Bee Aware Month 2023, an annual nation-wide celebration of bees and their importance to our ecosystem, food chain and economy.

Inspecting the beehives at Te Aro School, Wellington. From left to right: Associate Agriculture Minister Hon Jo Luxton, Wellington Beekeeper Association’s Eva Durrant, Te Aro School student Kala Banas and Apiculture NZ Board Chair Nathan Guy. Photo credit: Simon Edwards

Minister Luxton inspected the Te Aro School beehives in Wellington yesterday afternoon to mark the beginning of Bee Aware Month. She told young beekeepers from Te Aro School that bees were one of the most important insects in the world and needed our protection.

“Bees are the unsung heroes of nature but also of our thriving agriculture economy. They are hard workers, performing the crucial job of pollinating our country’s crops. They deserve praise because without bees we wouldn’t have much of the food we eat and export,” Jo Luxton said.

Bee Aware Month is coordinated by Apiculture New Zealand, and the theme this year is ‘Love Our Bees’ with a focus on the importance of pollination to our environment and food chain. New Zealanders are being asked to show their love by taking some simple steps to improve bee health such as planting bee-friendly plants, especially at times of pollen dearth such as autumn and spring when bees need extra sustenance and avoiding spraying pesticides when plants are flowering.

Apiculture New Zealand chief executive Karin Kos is asking New Zealanders to support our hard-working bees. “We are lucky to have a healthy bee population in New Zealand, but we can’t be complacent. Bees need our help to stay healthy and Bee Aware Month is all about encouraging people to do those small, but vital things, that make a real difference.”

Events to celebrate bees will be held across New Zealand, with a growing list of events available on the Apiculture New Zealand website.

The annual Bee Aware Month schools’ competition asks students to create art to show how our environment might look different without pollination.

New Zealanders can learn more about bees, Bee Aware Month and what to plant for bees by checking out the Apiculture New Zealand website or by following Bee Aware Month on Facebook or Instagram.

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