Book
Pollination Australia: Research and Development Priorities
Book
Analysis of the Market for Pollination Service in Australia
Book
Pollination Australia: Biosecurity risk management
Plan Bee Breeding Manual: Getting started with genetic selection
Plan Bee, Australia’s national honey bee genetic improvement program, has been initiated to provide the infrastructure necessary to implement modern genetic breeding techniques in the honey bee industry. The program builds on the considerable expertise in queen breeding in Australia and the progress made in previous and current programs. Plan Bee does not seek to replace these programs, but rather to provide new tools to assist queen breeders in order to speed genetic progress in their own breeding operations.
This 'Getting started with genetic selection' guide has been produced to help queen breeders define their breeding objectives, record bee data, evaluate their colonies and share data with the Plan Bee Project Team. This guide complements the Plan Bee Breeding Manual (see 'Related Resources' further down this page).
Improving Queen Bee Production
Report
Increasing the value of Australian honey as a health food
Honey has a long history of use as a therapeutic, including as a tonic or supplement to promote good digestive health. The many therapeutic properties of honey are now scientifically well-established, including its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, wound healing and antioxidant activity. Certain honeys are especially ‘bioactive’, and this has predominantly been linked to their floral source.
Australian commercial beekeepers produce more than 30,000 tonnes of honey each year from a variety of floral resources across Australia. Honey production takes place in most states and territories, with most production in the eastern states. Currently, about 70–80% of commercial honey produced in Australia is from eucalypt species, and this work aims to add value to the dominant floral varieties of honey by investigating their prebiotic potential.
The aim of this project was to provide evidence for the value of Australian honey as a prebiotic food that promotes digestive health. The anticipated outcomes are increased value, use and acceptance of our honey as a health product. This project undertook analysis of honey samples for antibacterial and inhibitory effects on gut bacteria, and then drilled down to understand the composition and levels of bioactive compounds. Impacts of honey samples on common gut pathogens sourced from healthy human donor stool samples and infection models were analysed.
This report shows that common Australian honeys – those collected and processed using standard beekeeping techniques – have prebiotic capacity and could be suitable to use to enhance gut health. Further research is required to understand the prebiotic activity of honey, including pre-clinical animal and human studies that investigate the effect of daily consumption on the gut microbiome. However, this project demonstrates there is scope to consider honey as a prebiotic. Further investigation is warranted to allow labelling of honey as an enhancer of gut health.
Impact to Biosecurity with Reduced Access to Public Lands
AHB T2M – Training Workshop for Australian Beekeepers – 2013 – Cairns
Review of chemistry associated with honey testing
New plant breeding program to grow Australian Manuka Honey market
The production of High Grade Manuka Honey in Australia has been given a boost, with the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) contracting a Leptospermum breeding program with West Australian based company ManukaLife.
News story
Rural Women’s Award Alumni Leader: ‘There’s strength in numbers’
The experience of being a finalist in the 2019 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award empowered Ann Ross to ‘give back’ to the agriculture sector.
Hygienic behaviour of the Western Australian bee breeding program
Industry summary
Project snapshot: Composition of Australian honey
Several factors make Australian honey unique. Australia has a wide variety of indigenous flora, including more than 700 species of eucalyptus, which contribute to the composition of honey. The diverse landscapes in which honey is produced in Australia, including dry inland areas, coastal regions and tropical regions, also impact the product, as does the availability and abundance of floral sources in those areas and the climatic conditions as the honey ripens.
This project investigated the composition of Australian honey following collection and analysis of more than 280 samples provided by beekeepers over the 2021-2023 harvest seasons. Eight honey components were analysed, with the mean and range of values reported for each component. Data was also separated into production area (state) to determine whether there are composition differences based on the general location of production.
Data from this project lays the foundation for the characterisation of Australian honey based on its composition. Industry leaders will be able to use this information to inform decisions regarding the marketability, sustainability and profitability of the Australian honey industry.
Meet the team: Steve Miller, Director AGBU
Whilst you may not be familiar with Steve Miller, Director of the Animal Genetics and Breeding Unit (AGBU), he and his team of 28 geneticists are behind some of the most important work taking place in the Australian honey bee industry.
Pollination Australia – Education and Training Needs Consultancy
Pollination Five Year R&D Plan
Book chapter
Pollination Aware Case Study: Plums and Prunes
Book chapter
Pollination Aware Case Study: Vegetables for Seed
Book chapter
Pollination Aware Case Study: Paterson’s curse
Book chapter
Pollination Aware Case Study: Peaches and Nectarines
