Cuban Beekeeper Produces Sweet Honey Of Stingless Bees
By Reuters
July 12, 2024 at 11:00:00 AM
Ballet dancer and beekeeper Dairon Ernesto takes part in a rehearsal at the National Theatre in Havana, Cuba, July 10, 2024. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
Bee hives are seen on the roof of the house of ballet dancer and beekeeper Dairon Ernesto (not pictured) in Havana, Cuba, July 8, 2024. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
A bee stands at the entrance of its hives on the roof of the house of ballet dancer and beekeeper Dairon Ernesto (not pictured) in Havana, Cuba, July 8, 2024. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
Ballet dancer and beekeeper Dairon Ernesto takes part in a rehearsal at the National Theatre in Havana, Cuba, July 10, 2024. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
HAVANA (Reuters) - Dairon Darias, a Cuban ballet dancer, has an unusual hobby when it comes time to unwind following the strict discipline of dance - raising melipona bees, a stingless Cuban variety that produces smooth and exquisite honey.
Darias is one of relatively few breeders of the native species on the Caribbean island. He sells the honey he produces as "Mieles de la Tierra," or "Honey from the Earth."
Stingless bees in Cuba do not produce honeycomb, and instead are kept in simple boxes or even rustic, hollowed-out logs. They tend to pollinate native species of plants, a key ecological niche that lends their honey a distinct flavor.
"We help the bees and they help us," explains Darias.
(Reporting by Annet Ríos, Carlos Carrillo y Alien Fernández, writing by Nelson Acosta; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
Reuters is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
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