Peter Davis talks about the ligurian bee

Peter talks about the ligurian bee Peter talks about breeding queens Some of the useful bi products of bees. Kangaroo Island is free of bee diseases how they get their different flavours of honey Peter talks about his plans for tourism Peter talks about the future of the K.I. honey industry.

Island Beehive

Featuring: Organic Ligurian Honey
Contact: Peter Davis
Location: Main Road, Kingscote
Telephone: (08) 8553 0080

Website: www.island-beehive.com.au

Anyone vaguely interested in bees and honey must visit the Island Beehive on the outskirts of Kingscote.

Kangaroo Island boasts the only remaining colony of pure bred Ligurian bees, and the honey they produce is considered among the best in the world. Introduced from Italy in 1884, the species has remained totally isolated after local regulators had the foresight to ban the entry of any other bees and honey products.

The Island Beehive visitor centre, opened in 2005, provides a fascinating insight into the history of Ligurian bees and their complex lifecycle, and visitors can also watch the honey being harvested. Of course, no visit would be complete without some tasting – and the beehive has plenty on offer. The centre is operated by Peter and Louise Davis, the founders of Kangaroo Island Organic Honey – one of the first and among the largest organic honey producers in Australia.

The company processes more than 100 tonnes of honey every year from hives on the island, and there is a growing overseas market for this pure, organic, Ligurian bee honey. An abundance of Australian flowers, shrubs and trees, including 30 species of flowering eucalypts, result in a unique range of strikingly different honeys that are available all year. Because of the island’s pristine air, temperate climate and natural environment, the quality is unsurpassed. All honey is extracted under the stringent certification guidelines of the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia (NASAA).

The Island Beehive has been specially designed to cater for coach tours and groups, and there is good access for the disabled. Coach parties can set up their own catering under cover, and there is a shop and café next to the information centre and honey factory.

All visitors must abide by the ban on bringing bees or honey to the island. Even a discarded honey jar could cause irreversible damage to a unique honey industry.

Ferguson Australia produces some of the world’s finest lobster and prawn products. At their holding shed in Kingscote you can view live king crabs, lobster and if your lucky some creatures just for the kids.

Kangaroo Island Ligurian Honey’s processing factory and Fryar’s Kangaroo Island Free Range Egg Farm, which produces 19,000 eggs per day are also located in this area.

The towns of Kingscote and American River offer many accommodation and dining options with picturesque locations on the waters edge. Don’t miss the wonderful views around Bay of Shoals winery, just behind Kingscote.