Worker Bees

3 October 2009 - 1:00pm

Michael S. Thompson of the Chicago Honey Co-op discusses his urban beekeeping operation and how it provides jobs to otherwise hard-to-employ people.

"We chose to raise this particular animal in an older American city because of the abundant nectar forage left over from farming here in the last two centuries and the addition of millions of city-planted shade trees. Locating the bee farm close to where we live and sell the products helps enormously in the reduced amount of travel time and heavy hauling needed for honey production. Also, under-used industrial parks abound in this postindustrial city, providing excellent opportunities for food production."

The program was initiated through a grant from the Illinois Department of Corrections, and provides work for recently released prisoners in Chicago.

Full Story: Urban Honey
Source: Orion Magazine, October 1, 2009
Bookmark and Share
Even if the report overestimates the costs by a factor of two and underestimates the tax-benefit by a similar amount, the conclusion would be pretty much the same: destination resorts cost local government and taxpayers money.