“The United States is suffering a significant loss in honeybee colonies and habitats. My bee colony is working towards increasing honeybee numbers and promoting and sustaining a viable bee habitat.”

Joel became interested in raising honeybees while volunteering in Ecuador, South America. He was working in a rural community there and one of his jobs involved assisting in honey production. Joel knew nothing about bees and barely spoke enough Spanish to understand his coworkers. Over time, however, he began to learn and understand more, becoming fascinated with the business and the dynamics of honeybee colonies.

After returning home to Minnesota, Joel decided to begin raising honeybees. In May 2013, he started with two colonies. With the help of an experienced neighbor, Joel slowly learned more about beekeeping and harvested his first small batch of honey in 2015. Today, Joel has four honeybee colonies. He hopes to have Old School Farm Honey available to sell to the public in the near future!