In recent years BeeCraft has proudly sponsored lectures by young researchers at the National Honey Show (NHS). All that changed in 2020 with the onset of covid-19 and the first virtual NHS in October which we were delighted to support with a series of short videos. Together with the Central Association of Bee-Keepers now we can bring you presentations from two PhD students – each research project is fascinating and is sure to be of interest to beekeepers and anyone with an interest in the natural world.

The programme:

• 7pm - Ayla Paul, University of Reading talking about the ‘Geographic origin and authenticity of UK honey samples’ followed by questions
• 8pm - Hamish Symington, University of Cambridge talking about ‘Flower power – the science of pollination’ followed by questions
• There will be a short interval between the live lectures

Ayla Paul, University of Reading:

Ayla Paul, now completing her PhD thesis at Reading University, will speak about her research on the origin and authenticity of UK honey samples, giving insights of the various methods – mass spectrometry, trace element analysis and pollen analysis – that she uses to develop an ’isoscape’ for the UK.

Hamish Symington, University of Cambridge:

Hamish is a final-year PhD student in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge. In this talk he will explore how pollination works, how much of our food relies on insects, and how his and others’ research aims to make flowers more efficient at being pollinated, thus helping to feed the projected 2050 global population of 10 billion people.

He is also a hobby beekeeper and secretary of the Cambridgeshire BKA Honey Show.

Please register with Zoom well ahead of time so that we can get started promptly on the evening using this link: BeeCraft & CABK Research Lectures