Who are we?

Duxton Bees is a farmgate beekeeping Company. The primary objective of Duxton Bees is to operate a safe, sustainable and profitable Apiary operation. Duxton Bees intends to become one of the largest commercial beekeeping businesses in Australia, supporting agriculture through pollination services and honey production across different geographical locations within Australia.

Key Responsibilities

• Organise, supervise and manage workflow of Assistant Beekeepers;
• Timely and complete management of hives during rounds and season as per the seasonal plan;
• Assist in overseeing Workshop Assistants;
• Oversee the apiary activities including allocating duties to assistant beekeepers, planning beekeeping schedules and ensuring adequate human resources are rostered to meet beekeeping requirements;
• Assist with recruitment, selection and training of Assistant beekeepers;
• Liaise with team to organise movement of bee hives and associated staff travel and logistics
• To support and encourage assistant beekeepers by guiding their learning so that they may maximise their potential, develop their beekeeping skills, improve their performance and become beekeepers of the future;
• Assist in all aspects of shed management required to ensure the efficiency of beekeeping operation;
• Identify and control hive diseases and maintain good beehive hygiene;
• Assess the strength of beehives and report findings;
• To assess and control hive swarming, report and take appropriate actions as necessary;
• Review budgets and make recommendations for purchasing of new beekeeping equipment and workflow management.
• Continuously strive to improve beekeeping understanding and technique and pass down knowledge to junior Assistant Beekeepers and other team staff
• Complete hive manipulations, including locating and replacing queens;
• Manage the feed and record food storage of beehives;

Key requirements

• Relevant bachelor’s degree or higher qualification plus at least 1-year experience managing/supervising an apiary full time experience (in the last 5 years), or if no qualification held, at least 5 years full time experience managing/supervising an Apiary as an Apiarist (1 year must be in the last 5 years);
• Full Drivers licence required, HC license and Forklift license preferable;
• Good work ethic and be a team player but must also be able to work independently;
• Must be physically fit, and with no known allergies to bees\bee stings;
• Must be resilient and enjoy working outside;
• Experience in the agricultural or horticultural industries, and an understanding of Biosecurity risks and challenges would be looked upon favourably;
• Willingness to undertake further studies as required for the position; and
• Availability to travel away from home during honey season (September to Feb).

Remuneration

An annual salary of $79,000 to $81,000 plus superannuation based on a 38-hour week.

This is an exciting and varied role, requiring outdoor work in the elements, physical fitness and will require extensive travel\time away from home during both honey and pollination periods.

We are committed to developing our Beekeepers and providing opportunities for personal and professional growth within the business.