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So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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Posted by George_in_MA z5/6 MA (My Page) on Wed, Apr 20, 05 at 9:19
| We're brand new at this, and we just installed our two colonies in their hives.
We didn't get into this to make money, but just crunching the numbers, I don't see how anyone makes money at beekeeping. At this point, I figure we're into these bees for nearly $600, and we still haven't bought the shallow supers yet.
Assuming I could rent out each hive once during the season for $40 a rental (that's $80), and assuming each hive produced 100 pounds of surplus honey that I could retail for $3 per pound, it hardly seems worth it.
Am I overlooking something here? Anyone have any insight into this?
George
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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| Looks like you have it figured about right. If money making is the primary concern, well..... |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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- Posted by ccrb1 z5 IND (My Page) on
Wed, Apr 20, 05 at 22:00
| a business plan makes more sense if you do it before you invest. Most beekeepers keep bees for multiple reasons. With my 11 hives, I've been profitable, but honestly, I never invested $600 for two hives with bees and no supers. I do manage to retail all my honey at $5 a lb. That's based on the fact that I practice chemical free beekeeping. No miticides. No drugs. I could probably come close to selling all I produce at $6 but at $5, I sell out every year. I don't know if 100 lbs per hive is optimistic for where you are or not. I've had years of 100, and years of 15. |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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| Its doubtful that you'll turn a profit in only one season, but you won't be buying new hives and supers every year so when do it for more than one year you have a great opportunity to make back the money you put in, Also if you are a wood worker you can build a hive quite easily. |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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i have heard that 300 hives will make you a living. 10-20 hives is a hobby and be glad if it repays you for the supplies. it strikes me that cut comb makes more sense.for the time and effort involved. i have recently picked up the ross rounds.and am optimistic
david |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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The people in it to make a living spend the winter building equipment and doing maintainance setting up pollination contracts fixing their own trucks.
They take the larger portion of their income moving the bees onto crops for a fee, perhaps as many as 6.Tree fruits, small fruits, melons, cukes, pumpkins, seed crops up and down the coast or elevations. Might even make a few bucks selling nucs and queens, or at least producing some for their own.
The honey is a byproduct that can be sold. So is the cappings wax.
You paid full bust out retail for all of your supplies.
If you bought 500 or a 1000 of anything the price is a bit lower. Right now you are paying for an education in beekeeping. After a wile you might just build your own supers, make a few splits with swarm cells, trade honey for lumber,etc. |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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I HAVE 2500 HIVES.
RENT THEM OUT FOR $100 EACH FOR 3 MONTHS IN CALIFONIA..EACH HIVE YELDS AVG 50LB OF HONEY OVER THIS TIME . SALEING FOR $2.50 PER LB..... AFTER PAYING FOR BEEKEEPERS, TRUCKING, LABORERS, NEW HIVES AND SWARMS.. IN THIS TIME FRAME OF 3 MONTHS....I BANK $500,000.00 I MAKE $1.6MILL GROSS EACH YEAR.....BEEKEEPING FOR ME OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS HAS BEEN GOOOOOOOOOOD!!!! |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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Greetings and Salutations...
reminds me of that old joke about the farmer who won a million bucks in the lottery some years back (when a million bucks was WORTH something). At the interview when they presented him with the giant check, the presentor asked what he would do with the money.
After a moment's consideration, he said "well, I will probably just keep farming until it's all gone...".
regards
dave mundt |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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I just ran beewhisperers numbers, and I only get $562,500.00
gross. What am I missing? |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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I was wondering that too, Jrneumiller, I came up with the same #. Even if the rental is per month, that's 750000 for rental for $1,062,500 and still comes up 538k short. maybe the cap wax is worth half a million???????? hmmmmm
If he is making that, then its an average of $200 per hive per year, which tells me the honey alone does not pay for the work of keeping them. |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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| Beewhisperer's numbers are correct, his post is incorrect. He grossed 1.06 million, not 1.6 million. Here's how: 2500 x 100 = 250000. For three months 250000 x 3 = 750,000.00. Plus his honey (2500 x 50 x 2.50 = $312,500. $750,000 + $312,500 = 1062500. |
RE: So how do beekeepers turn a profit...?
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| And this took you almost a year to figure it out?....LOL I think only the larger one's are laughing all the way to the bank, [most
of the time] here we have them too, running around 3000 to 5000 hives,
it seems they are all well off. They hire seasonal workers from Mexico. |
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