Meet Bee Boss Lulu Letlape, an African female pioneer protecting our bees for future generations 

Treading mindfully on our planet should be everyone’s mission now, and in the future. The United Nations defines sustainability as, “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” The role we have to play is to take in account the earth, and support sustainable operations. One way we can show we care for our earth is to protect bees as, they are widely recognised as being essential to food security and to the environment.

According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), pollinators are responsible for 35% of crop production globally.  This increases the outputs of 87 important, staple crops worldwide like potatoes, cabbage, onions, coffee, watermelon, cotton, apples, avos etc. 

Cue Bongi Bees; founded in 2017, the Pretoria-based, Black women-owned bee enterprise safeguards these vital pollinators while providing golden honey and jobs to the community.  Lulu Letlape is the fearless power-house head of Bongi Bees.  

For Lulu her journey with bees was personal.  

After being diagnosed with a devastating autoimmune disease, mainly due to stress, Lulu had to change her environment and lifestyle, to maintain her mind and body. Raw honey, she believes, contributed to helping her immune system stay balanced and stronger. And so, her passion was ignited; the start of a fascinating journey which would give her a refreshed zest for life. 

Starting the company was a direct response to her health condition coupled with a passion for bees and honey in general. Lulu’s steadfast commitment to sustainability within the bee community now not only protects bees but also builds and strengthens the ongoing health and biodiversity of local hives. 

Registered as beekeepers with the Department of Agriculture, her business boasts membership with the Southerns Beekeepers Association. Bongi Bees is serving a multi-fold purpose to the bee and human communities alike. The company focuses on the safe rehoming of bees; the provision of raw honey and potential jobs to the surrounding communities. Locals have Lulu’s number and rely on her to fearlessly find the Queen and safely coax all the worker bees to another hive in a better location or in one of her hives. 

The business is aptly named after a Zulu word which is derived from the word ‘Bonga’ meaning be thankful. Through this naming convention, Lulu wanted to honour the bees for the gift of honey and their contribution to her wellness journey and the environment.

Lulu adds. “Considering the vast decline of bee populations in recent years, bee conservation has become increasingly crucial. Bees play a pivotal role in pollinating a wide variety of crops and wild plants, contributing significantly to food production and biodiversity.  Without bees, many plants would struggle to reproduce and future generations would find food production a challenge or prohibitively expensive. The effects of a world without bees would be devastating – amongst which would include diminished crop yields and ecosystem imbalances or manual pollination. Beekeeping is a task that requires a collective effort. Added to the work we do surrounding bees, we felt that it was necessary to empower communities by providing meaningful work opportunities to those living in the areas we serve. I am grateful for support from corporate sponsors like Momentum Metropolitan, who share my passion to continue this work.  

Charlene Lackay, head of Sustainability at Momentum Metropolitan said, “Business, society and the environment is interconnected and focusing on sustainability is beneficial to all.  We are involved in larger projects such as solar installations, recycling and reducing waste and saving water in all our offices. Beyond this, we wanted to find a meaningful initiative for people to connect with the value that we get from the environment. Working with Bongi Bees is in line with our ethos of empowering women and supporting their success.

As mentioned above, part of what Bongi Bees does is supply the safe and sustainable rehoming of bee colonies. The business also assists homeowners in local communities who find hives on their properties to join the world of beekeeping, by keeping and managing their own beehives as well as creating new apiaries. In this way, they too can bring dignity to themselves and their families through purposeful work, with deliciousness as an end-product.

May this World Bee Day be a reminder to all of us, to recognise the fact that bees are at the centre of a symbiotic relationship between the environment, and human survival. By protecting them, we play a role in protecting our environment, which ultimately, protects us all. 

Did You Know?

• When a bee finds a promising food source, it passes on that information to the others when it returns to the hive through what is called the “waggle dance.” Waggle dances are made up of two phases - a rapidly undulating waggle phase and a semi-circular return phase that together create a kind of figure eight. The bee will complete 1 to 100 of these; the direction and number of circuits shows the other bees the location, distance and size of the food source. 
• A single bee can carry up to 35% of their body weight in pollen.
• Bees navigate using the sun as we would a compass, and because they can see polarised light, are able to find their way even on cloudy days. There is some evidence that bees are also sensitive to the earth’s magnetism and may use it to navigate as well.   

What can we do?

• If you have an unwanted bee hive on your property, don’t call a fumigator or pest control, contact bee keepers who can relocate the bee hives safely. 
• Use alternatives to pesticides in your garden, and protect your visiting friends (bees) from these harmful substances. 
• Support and buy honey from local beekeepers.
• Honey-bees are generally not aggressive - they’ll only attack when the believe their hive is threatened. Don’t swat at bees, rather sit as still as possible and leave them be. 

To contact Lulu regarding rehoming hives or purchasing her honey please see her website https://bongibees.co.za/