Rearing Kele-Kele Bees : A Smart Alternative Business during Covid-19 Pandemic.

Rearing Kele-Kele Bees: A Smart Alternative Business during The Covid-19 Pandemic

By: Made Dewantari

Rearing kele-kele bees (Trigona sp.), or honey bees that are specifically available in Bali Island has high economy potency for family business.  This has been proven that kele-kele bees are able to produce honey, natural propolis with premium quality of royal jelly.  Propolis produced by kele-kele bees contain of antioxidant in flavonoid and a complete of vitamins, minerals and essential amino acids.  Consuming of propolis as food supplement regularly have proven to promote higher immunity system of their consumers, accelerate curing proses of certain diseases, and also have been used as material for beauty skin health; as the propolis have regenerate cells faster and delay skin ages. 

Rich in premium quality of nutrient contents

Consumers have realized for the beneficial of having kele-kele honey regularly due to the carbohydrate content particularly the glucose and fructose and glycemic index that are friendly to human’s metabolic system thus promoting the immune systems of all ages of consumers.  Kele-kele honey also is rich in complete minerals including sodium (Na), calcium (Ca), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), phosphorus (P), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), mangan (Mn), chromium (Cr) and selenium (Se).  Besides that, kele-kele honey also is rich in vitamins K, C, and B, particularly thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, panthothenic acid, pyridozin, folic acid and ascorbic acid that enrich its flavour and aroma, too.  

Kele-kele bee rearing is promising

Facing the Covid-19 pandemic at the moment where there types of certain jobs that have not been done anymore providing more jobless people thus lose their family income.  Therefore, kele-kele bee rearing is one of smart decisions that will be able to develop family income, as the kele-kele bee rearing does not necessarily need large size of land to work in or special or advance skill to run this business. Besides that, kele-kele bees do not have stings and they do not depend on flower’s pollen only like other common bees do.  The length of honey production is not too long ranging from two to six months.  Kele-kele bees produce honey and propolis with premium quality that their prices are higher than normal honey’s.  In the covid-19 pandemic, society realize of the benefits of consuming of kele-kele honey that even more increase demand for their premium quality of honey, propolis and royal jelly.