About this course

Build your skills in honey bee biosecurity

Healthy honey bee colonies depend on good biosecurity practices and regular monitoring for pests and diseases. This two-day, hands-on course will help you develop the skills to recognise and manage threats to your colonies while understanding your responsibilities under the Australian Honey Bee Industry Biosecurity Code of Practice.

You’ll learn how to:

  • understand and interpret the Australian Honey Bee Industry Biosecurity Code of Practice
  • apply biosecurity principles and practices at your apiary
  • monitor honey bee colonies for pests and diseases
  • understand and carry out required monitoring and record-keeping activities
  • manage biosecurity risks to help protect the health of your colonies.

Whether you’re an established beekeeper or looking to improve your biosecurity practices, this course will help you build your knowledge and confidence in monitoring and managing honey bee pests and diseases.

This is an approved bee pest and disease management course. Completing it meets the biosecurity training obligations for beekeepers under Section 9.2a of the Australian Honey Bee Industry Biosecurity Code of Practice.

Is this course right for me?

Before registering, consider whether this course suits your beekeeping experience and goals. It is designed for beekeepers who want to improve their skills in honey bee pest and disease management and understand their biosecurity responsibilities. The course focuses on practical biosecurity measures, colony monitoring and record keeping, so you should be comfortable following procedures and applying them to your own apiary. If you want to strengthen your biosecurity practices and help protect your honey bee colonies, click on the register now button.

At a glance:

Location: Statewide
Course duration: 2 days
Start date: Multiple intakes
Number of units: 2
Indicative fees: $700 GST-free
Accredited Course: Yes

Details

  • Identify the suitable PPE required and WHS risks
  • Assess the health and condition of brood
  • Assess the health and condition of adult bees
  • Identify the climatic factors that predispose honey bees to the various pests and diseases
  • Identify the appropriate samples to assist in the identification of the pest or disease
  • Identify the necessary actions to reduce the impact of pests and disease of honey bees
  • Industry development and adoption of the Bee Biosecurity Code of Practice

$700 GST-free

Participants will study the following topics:

  • Seasonal cycle of honey bee colonies
  • Why pest and diseases are important
  • What is disease, and what causes disease
  • Different pathogens and transmission methods
  • Four main brood diseases
  • Opening a hive and inspecting for brood disease (practical)
  • Collecting samples for diagnosis (practical)
  • Adult bee diseases
  • Hive pests
  • Non-infectious disorders
  • Exotic pests and disease
  • Surveillance programs for exotics
  • Exotic incursion responses
  • Management strategies for disease prevention
  • Industry development and adoption of the Bee Biosecurity Code of Practice

  • Participants will receive course notes and a copy of the AgGuide Healthy Bees.
  • This course is delivered using both indoor and outdoor instruction.

Participants must:

  • Be actively keeping bees, managing apiary sites, or preparing to establish a hive network while fulfilling mandatory biosecurity obligations.
  • Be comfortable working outdoors around active honey bee colonies while wearing protective equipment.
  • Have no known severe or life-threatening allergies to bee stings (anaphylaxis).
  • Be physically capable of lifting and inspecting hive boxes, standing for extended outdoor periods, and handling apiary equipment across uneven terrain.
  • Supply and wear mandatory protective personal gear during practical apiary sessions (including full bee suit or jacket with veil, protective gloves, and sturdy closed-in leather footwear).
  • Strictly comply with field biosecurity measures, sanitation protocols, and trainer safety directions.

Language, Literacy, Numeracy, and Digital Capability Requirements

To complete this course successfully, participants will need:

  • Reading: Interpreting the Australian Honey Bee Industry Biosecurity Code of Practice, statutory biosecurity legislation, pest/disease identification guides, and state reporting requirements.
  • Writing: Completing mandatory biosecurity logbooks, recording hive inspection results, drafting apiary biosecurity plans, and maintaining traceability records.
  • Numeracy: Tracking inspection frequencies, calculating pest infestation rates (e.g., alcohol wash/sugar shake counts), measuring barrier management ratios, and logging hive movements.
  • Oral Communication & Hearing: Communicating effectively with state biosecurity officers, reporting suspect exotic pests or diseases immediately to authorities, and following trainer safety briefings around hives.
  • Digital Literacy: Basic computer or smartphone skills.

This course has been mapped to the following national units of competency:

  • AHCBEK313 Manage pests and diseases within a honey bee colony
  • FBPOPR2066 Apply sampling procedures.


Additional Information

For information on students rights and responsibilities, and the Tocal College Code of Practice see Industry qualification student policies.

The Honey bee Biosecurity course "meets the Australian Honey Bee Industry Biosecurity Code of Practice; Section 9.2 a) approved pest and disease management course."



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