foodsources
the buzz around town
Beeproject Apiaries proves that urban hives are the bee’s knees.
As more and more people migrate into cities,
it becomes harder to connect consumers with
where their food comes from. Take honey: when
spooning a glossy golden drizzle into a mug of
tea, buzzing bees are far from top of mind. But
with pollinator populations on the decline, the
honey bee has become the symbol of a pressing
environmental issue.
Most of Canada’s bees are found in the Prairie
provinces, with 66% of Canada’s total number
of colonies housed here (Manitoba accounts for
about 13% of the nation’s total). While prairie
populations are on a fluctuating, weak rise,
around the world bee numbers continue to drop.
This struggle has been steady since the 1950s
with a sharp decrease seen in the early aughts.
According to a report released earlier this year
by the UN, 75% of the world’s food crops are
dependent on pollination, yet almost half of
invertebrate pollinator species, including bees
and butterflies, are facing extinction. A bleak,
bee-less world would mean no more canola,
coffee or cranberries, or many of the other
fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and oils we enjoy
today.
As the threat of declining numbers of
these hapless hard workers has moved from
the consciousness of scientists to that of the
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general public, concerned folks have taken it
upon themselves to help save the bees. “There
is a lot of interest in bees as a result of the
problems associated with high colony losses,
but also concerns over the environment and
local food production,” comments Robert
Currie, head of entomology at the University of
Manitoba. Many are beginning to look in a new
direction: beekeeping within the city. As Currie
notes, “Urban beekeeping contributes to the
pollination of vegetables, fruits and ornamentals
in the city’s managed gardens and native
ecosystems.”
Urban beekeeping has caught hold as the
potential saviour of the future of our food
and of our connection to its production. In
Manitoba, the vanguards of this movement
are Chris and Lindsay Kirouac, owners of
Beeproject Apiaries.
The couple, who met through the nursing
program at the University of Manitoba (and
continue to work as nurses part-time) are selfdescribed “DIYers”—Chris and Lindsay were
already making their own yogurt and keeping
chickens in the backyard of their Wolseley-area
home before setting up their first hobby hive
in 2009. The couple continued on their merry
beekeeping way until they realized that the city
Photography: Courtesy of Beeproject Apiaries
By Janice Tober and Joelle Kidd