Beekeeper’s Passion.
Thanks to the performance of producers like Santiago, the Matanzas UEB was the only one in the country to meet its 2025 honey production plan.
His maternal grandfather, his father, an uncle… Santiago Esteban Fundora Ibarra inherited his beekeeping skills from his family. First his brother Rogelio, and then he himself, took up what they enjoy “among bees and honey, in the tranquility of the countryside, listening to the birdsong.”
After 26 years in the trade, he confesses to still being amazed by what bees are capable of, by “how grateful they are if they are cared for and healthy,” and the pleasure of opening the first hive… seeing the panels full of honey… It’s a lot of work, he admits, but if it goes as planned, nothing makes him happier.
His joy is only interrupted when he remembers that storm Alberto in 2018 that almost drowned his hives… “We were scared, but we saved them,” this man from Matanzas summarizes the only truly difficult times in his life as a beekeeper. “Ironically, after that year, my brother and I reached a record of 113 tons (tn).”
Today, with average yields of 25 to 30 kg of honey per hive, Santiago attributes the progress in production and yields to the timely implementation of essential beekeeping practices. He maintains that this is possible thanks to the reliable and timely delivery of supplies. «That benefits us, the country, and the well-being of the bees.»
In his opinion, two factors could be jeopardizing this ample financial position: inflation and the payment per ton of honey, which remains very low despite the benefits of a foreign currency system governed by a floating exchange rate, which “we are grateful began in the middle of last year.”
The performance of producers like Santiago made the Matanzas Beekeeping Basic Business Unit (UEB) the one in the country that met its 2025 target. This plan was sweetened by 156 tons (tn) more than the 1,400 approved for the period.
Favorable weather conditions and abundant blooms helped tremendously, explains Director Rubén Jesús Lugo Tanquero, who acknowledges the “support of Apicuba, the national company, in terms of fuel and specific supplies, essential for utilizing transhumance and increasing production.”
Lugo Tanquero praises the professionalism of the beekeepers in Matanzas, a value enhanced by “the training provided to the production base, monthly monitoring of key indicators, and the ongoing analysis of their needs.”
Raydel Cabello Valle, general secretary of the Provincial Union of Agricultural, Forestry, and Tobacco Workers, believes that the effective relationship between the entity and the producers is one of the reasons for the UEB’s success, and he also considers it “a strong candidate for the highest category of National Vanguard.”
The union leader is certain that he is witnessing a group ready to transition to a company structure, something necessary for the independent management of resources, foreign currency, and other income, with the aim of “achieving a more robust beekeeping sector.”
Written by Eva Luna Acosta Armiñán.
