Welcome to the County Louth Beekeepers Association (LBKA) website

Originally founded in the summer of 1910, our association works on behalf of member beekeepers, providing opportunities to learn the craft and science of beekeeping. Equally important, we provide a social outlet for members to meet with fellow beekeepers - opportunities to share tips and tales. We are blessed to have many excellent beekeepers who are always willing to share their knowledge and experiences.

Our association is committed to supporting the native dark bee, Apis mellifera mellifera.

We are affiliated to our national body, the Federation of Irish Beekeepers Associations (FIBKA). We provide our members with classes and support to attain FIBKA academic and practical certifications.

The Kevin Griffin apiary is located near the M1 roundabout at Junction 16, where members can come and gain practical experience through the beekeeping year.

We also hold regular lectures on all aspects of beekeeping. Members and interested non-members are always welcome to attend.

Upcoming events

  • On Wednesday, 16th October, we will hold a guest lecture by Dr. Samuel Ramsey, the person who first identified exactly what Varroa feed on in honeybees. This is an opportunity to hear from someone who is probably the world authority on Varroa. You can get a taste for his lecture here.  The lecture is in the Crowne Plaza, Dundalk ad 8pm. There will be a small charge of €5 on the door to help cover costs. We will also have a raffle with prizes of honey from our members - a great chance to see what everyone else's honey tastes like!
  • Our Honey Show is on Saturday, 9th November 2019 in Teagasc. There are plenty of opportunities for everyone to enter something. It's a great way to learn about shows and how to enter shows. We'll also have a draw for a free annual membership of Louth Beekeepers' Association among all the entries, so whether you're a novice or a pro, you have exactly the same chances of winning.
  • We will hold our Annual General Meeting on Thursday, 14th November at 8pm in Teagasc. We plan on having a talk as well on the evening to make it a little more interesting than usual, so you've no excuse for not turning up!

Looking after your bees

Membership Fees

You can pay your 2020 membership whenever you like. Remember that you get insurance, 12 copies of An Beachaire, online copies of BBKA News, access to the association apiary and the learning opportunities there, as well as the monthly lectures, so it's  a real bargain.

The fee for an adult is €80. There are a number of ways to pay:
  • Send a cheque with your details to the secretary (click on CONTACT above).
  • Pay online in our online shop.
  • Bank transfer to our account - IBAN: IE47 AIBK 9324 5028 6971 39 (BIC: AIBKIE2D), but be sure to let the secretary know!
  • The secretary will be happy to accept your membership fee at any lecture.

Beginners Course

We had an Apiary Day for potential beginners a few weeks ago which was well attended. We have also since had a number of people sign up for the beginners class. It now looks like our course that will start in the New Year will be at least as popular as last year, so we will probably once again hold two classes - one in Dundalk and one in Drogheda, both in the Teagasc offices. If you are interested, or you know someone who is interested, it's important to register your interest sooner rather than later since we may have to limit numbers if the classes get too large.

News and External Events

The breaking news section has news on:
  • COLOSS
  • An Beachaire
  • FIBKA Congress
  • NUIG Research
  • Fota Honey Show
  • ....
All lectures start at 8pm in Teagasc, Dundalk (see map). Beginners are welcome and admission is free. See the map below if you need help finding us.
This website is a work in progress, if members have interesting articles, stories, pictures, videos etc. that they'd like to submit for inclusion, please get in touch. We would be delighted to publish a blog post from anyone who has something to say. If you would like to share something but you're unsure about any aspect, we'll be delighted to help where we can. You can contact us at:  lbkasec@gmail.com, or through the contact form. ​