The buzz on bees

Maori connection between land and people is driving a Northland business development, potentially worth $30 million to the region.

The development, Beewize, draws on traditional Maori structures to achieve its goal of encouraging Maori land owners to become bee farmers on their own land.

Beewize is a Manuka honey project based in Tai Tokerau and managed by Murray Moses from Mangonui.

It's part of a larger initiative, which encourages whanau businesses to work together in the Manuka honey industry, harking back to traditional whanau/hapu structures. Each whanau business is able to retain its individuality, be innovative and independent, but can also gain from cooperating and joining forces.

For example the whanau involved in Beewize can share large scale plant and equipment as well as negotiate deals and benefits as a collective and also undertake research and development which will increase the value of their honey.

Beewize is involved in a business innovation and research programme led by Dr Colin Knox, a senior lecturer in AUT University's Te Ara Poutama (Faculty of Maori Development).

Knox's "lifetime of experience working in the public sector and private industry" has seen him involved with research into Maori land based business development and why projects often failed.

Knox says that although the cooperative structure is quite common in New Zealand, and mirrors traditional Maori structures, it is about re-introducing economic structures which have been successful for centuries.

"We are going back to reintroduce something that is traditional, but can be defined under Pakeha law."

Beewize developed from a realisation that Maori land owners were not getting good returns for allowing bee farmers to place hives on their land.

The company wanted to improve the returns which Maori land owners got from leasing space for beehives, so organises the placement and management of beehives, initially from around the Whangaroa to Whatuwhiwhi area.

Its objective is to get more whanau involved in the valuable Manuka honey industry.

As part of AUT's Centre for Maori Innovation and Development Knox uses his research and business experience to take Maori business projects "from concept to market".

Murray Moses says that in its first year the project involved eight Maori land owners with hives on their land.

He says that the first season which ran from September 2010 through to February 2011, saw "better than average" results.

He puts this down to the whanau business where the attitude of the beekeepers is one of kaitiaki.

"The whanau worked the hours and did what they had to do to look after the bees and get the results."

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