Joan Mahoney, the New York State Apiary Inspector, announced a cost-free program offered by Penn State to help experienced beekeepers learn how to raise queens. Her press release is contained below. To apply for the program, click the following button:
EPIQ Info and Application
Do you live in the northeast? Are you interested in becoming a queen producer? Apply for the EPIQ Program!
We are looking for beekeepers who wish to become queen producers, or who are already queen producers, to participate in our Northeast SARE grant-funded program. EPIQ (Education about Production and Insemination of Queens) offers specialized, in-depth training to a select group of Northeast (CT, DE, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT, WV & Washington DC) beekeepers who wish to improve their operations by producing queens for sale, distribution, or to increase sustainability.
We are seeking 200 beekeepers to participate in this program, which is specifically designed to offer training for both entry-level and experienced queen producers.
If you have a minimum of five (5) years of beekeeping experience, a desire to integrate or improve queen production by rearing, stock evaluation and genetic selection, as well as reliable internet access, good organizational skills, commitment to reporting, and a desire to engage with other beekeepers, please apply to participate.
Select beekeeper participants will be provided with equipment and training in artificial (instrumental) insemination at in-person workshops taught by experts in the bee breeding industry: Susan Cobey and Cory Stevens.
The program leaders are Penn State Extension Educator Dr. Robyn Underwood (rmu1@psu.edu) and Center for Pollinator Research Apiarist Kate Anton (kxa138@psu.edu).