September 15, 2023 • 43 mins
Daniel Dunnom, a bee keeper, tropical fruit farmer, and UH Hilo alumni, shares the inside scoop of what life is like as a bee keeper and how he copes with the challenges of day to day farm operations, including a meditation he uses called "Bee Breath".
Brought to you by University of Hawaii College of Tropical Ag. and Human Resources (CTAHR), and the Seeds of Well-being (SOW) Project. This podcast is supported by the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network (FRSAN) grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and Hawaii Department of Agriculture.
To connect with Daniel for partnerships or to purchase his honey, email him at danieldunnom at gmail dot com
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Thao (00:01):
The views, information, or opinions expressed during the
Seeds of Wellbeing series aresoely those of the individuals
involved and do not necessarilyrepresent those of the
University of Hawaii College ofTropical Agriculture and Human
Resources, our funders, or anyother affiliated organizations
in this project.
(00:23):
Welcome to a seeds of well beingvoices from the field podcast,
featuring voices of Hawaiiagricultural producers for
Hawaii agriculture producers.
These podcasts are made possibleby a grant from the University
of Hawaii College of TropicalAgriculture and Human Resources,
also known as CTAHR. And theseeds of wellbeing are so
project and is supported by agrant from the US Department of
(00:45):
Agriculture, National Instituteof Food and Agriculture, and the
Hawaii Department ofAgriculture.
Alexis Kerver (00:56):
Joining us today on Voices from the Field is
Daniel Dunnom. Aloha Daniel,Welcome. How are you doing?
Daniel Dunnom (01:05):
Aloha thanks for having me
Alexis Kerver (01:07):
Yeah, of course.
Thanks for being here today.
We're excited to hear from youand your experience in the
field. Why don't you go aheadand start with telling us a
little bit about who you are andwhat you do.
Daniel Dunnom (01:22):
My name is Daniel Dunnom. And I am a tropical
fruit farmer and Beekeeper. Ilive in Puna, in the Hawaiian
Paradise, Park subdivision, andI grow mangoes and lychee and
coconuts is my three main foodcrops and then and then I am
(01:48):
also a beekeeper, and I producea lot of honey. And I'm UH Hilo
alumni, I went for tropicalplant science and agroecology
and then I also picked upbeekeeping while I was at the
college and also got mycertificate and beekeeping so
(02:09):
Iʻve been using those skills inthe field, and I've made a
business. And I've beensuccessful in business like
bootstrapping it, and doing sogood so far.
Alexis Kerver (02:25):
That's wonderful.
And tell us a little bit moreabout your business.
Daniel Dunnom (02:31):
I started in 2018. Right, right before right
before the big 2018 eruption.
And yeah, I started out withlike a challenge right off the
bat, the the we had a little bitof ash fall and wiped out my
whole lychee crop and. Right.
(02:54):
And then yeah, I've dealt with,you know, pandemic and, you
know, crippling recession andall that sense. And I'm still
here. So
Alexis Kerver (03:06):
Let's talk a little bit about that. You know,
so part of our project seeds ofwell being is we're looking at
how can we better respond to thenatural stresses and the
anticipated stresses really oflife and farming. So when you
experienced that with yourlychee crops, what was one of
(03:27):
the first things that you did torespond to that? Honestly...
Daniel Dunnom (03:33):
Unless it's like [] or that you know, you're just
kind of in a state of shockanyway because like, you know,
impending doom you know, thelava might come your way and you
know, it was just kind of youknow, you gotta I meditate a lot
and I have a good you know,stretching routine and like, I
(03:54):
try to just stay calm and likeprepared to handle any any kind
of situations and then a lot ofit has to do with like, positive
self talk like in the face oflike unsurmountable
circumstances like one of thequestions I like to ask myself
is like, when I'm faced likewith one of those situations is
(04:18):
like, what what would aresilient farmer do? And yeah,
and then in that situation, likewhen the lava was coming, I just
you know, I did what I could doit I just got ready for next
season, you know, and then Istarted to branch out into other
(04:40):
things I started doing I hadn'thad bees yet at my place and I
eventually I got bees and youknow, some more stuff going in.
I got into other things likeorchids and you know, just
trying to diversify. You know,
Alexis Kerver (05:00):
It really was a catalyst for you to branch out
with your business and yourexperience and with your
beekeeping so that came afterthe lava flow. And this was
really all of your businessstarted after your education at
UH Hilo you said you were analumni with a tropical plant
(05:21):
science and agroecology. How didyou initially decide that that
was the route that you wanted togo versus some of the other You
know, working on a farm? Whatinspired you? Or what made you
decided that you wanted to growyour own crops and produce your
own food and then bring thatinto a business? What is that
(05:43):
spark for you?
Daniel Dunnom (05:45):
Right? Um, well, I'd always I'd always had like
a, you know, a vegetable garden.
And I was like, really intosustainability and like, grow my
own food and I just kind of, youknow, took a passion of mine and
something that I loved and, andturned it into something that I
could make money with. And thenyou know, like, when I first
(06:08):
started in agriculture, I hearda lot of "oh your gonna make no
money" and this isn't that like,"Oh, you want to be a farmer
really?" Like but then, I don'tknow it was just like, well, you
know, if I can if I can dosomething that I love, and it
(06:30):
makes me happy, you know? Andbecause you definitely don't You
don't you don't do beekeeping tolike get rich you know you do it
for the love of the bees and thelove of the honey and that's
important and you know that'syour main focus you know even if
you don't make a lot of moneyyou're still happy and you're
(06:53):
still propelled and but thelonger you stick it out the more
rewarding it is and you know
Alexis Kerver (07:22):
sounds like a key component to being a resilient
farmer is remembering your whyremembering why you do this,
what is it that keeps you going?
The love of bees and love ofhoney is a great reason why to
keep you motivated with beefarming.
Daniel Dunnom (07:39):
Right. channeling my inner Tony Robbins, like if
you find the the why the how thehow is easy. So, yeah, that's a
good question to ask, like, WhyWhy am I even doing this? You
know?
Alexis Kerver (07:58):
And that can be a daunting question for some
people, because sometimes wejust get so caught up in the day
to day of, of living that, youknow, sometimes we can get
drifted off from that intentionfrom that core reason that keeps
us motivated. And we're seeingsuch high levels of stress and
(08:19):
depression amongst our farmersin Hawaii. However, we also see
such a deeply rooted reason forwhy that intimate relationship
and connection to the land. Sowhat is what are some of our
issues? What do you think ishappening here? With that
disconnect,With overall well being, and the
(08:44):
operations of farming forfarmers here in Hawaii?
Daniel Dunnom (08:57):
Um, well, it's, it's Wow, that's like, That's a
deep question. The disconnect, Ithink a lot of it is due there's
a there's a lot of people outout there that understand and
(09:22):
they support local agricultureand they get it, but there's,
there's always that thing,consumer preference, you know,
and a lot of times like, peoplehave to be like, educated on
especially like with withbeekeeping and stuff like that,
like, with the honey. I like totry to bridge that gap by
(09:48):
bringing like an observationhive to the market and a lot of
times that's like, why, youknow, people have never seen
inside a beehive and you knowthey don't necessarily know like
all the great benefits of ofhoney or you know eaten like
(10:10):
fruits and things like that solike a little you know sciency
kind of little lesson on bees orwhatever it is like every week I
try to have like a littledifferent something something to
teach the kids
Alexis Kerver (10:29):
And you do this at markets with kids, or do you
go to schools?
Daniel Dunnom (10:35):
I've gotten invited a couple of teachers
have invited me and I've donethe the USDA career day up at
the Komohana extension. Andyeah, I've I've done a lot of
outreach for like beekeeping inthe community and stuff and but
(10:59):
yeah, mostly I just hit themarkets and I go to quite a few
different ones mostly Makuʻumarket but some other smaller
ones as well. I've been doingthe volcano night market and
sometimes I make it down toKalapana.
Alexis Kerver (11:13):
On a sidenote Have you ever considered getting
into not be extermination...
What is it called when bees arestuck inside your walls? And you
have to call someone to removethem?
Daniel Dunnom (11:27):
Bee removals. Oh yeah. I do quite a bit of those.
And yeah. Yeah, it's kinda it'skind of stressful, you know,
because you get you get peoplethat are freaking out because
they got bees in their house.
And usually, oh, they're like,oh, they just started coming in,
(11:49):
you know, it'd be really easythough. They just started coming
in and then they got like, awhole wall or ceiling full of
them. And then he got to keepthem calm. And then they like,
you know, they expect you todrop everything. You know, some
sometimes take like a week long,you know, it's not easy. Just to
like, get them out. Right? Openthe wall and you know, then a
(12:16):
lot of times people like, oh,no, don't cut my wall. It's
like, yeah, it's a real Yeah.
It's a real I don't know, touchysituation.
Alexis Kerver (12:33):
When you do the removals, do you put the folks
in suits? Or are, you know, arethey exposed? Because you're
wearing a suit to be protected?
Daniel Dunnom (12:41):
Yeah, yeah. One time one time I did that, like
the lady was like, reallyexcited because her it was just
a real simple one. It was like aswarm that had landed in a tree
and it was on a branch and itwas like a fairly easy removal.
And the lady was like, reallyinto it. And yeah, so I got her
(13:07):
in a suit, Iʻm going to cut thebranch. And like just this
lady's commentary, like theywent in the box just fine. And
like I'm getting them scooped inthere and like this lady just to
like I forget what she said butall of a sudden the bees where
like "uh uh" and theʻyre likeflying away and I'm like, trying
(13:29):
to smoke and like get back inthe box, I'm not gonna make this
mistake again. You know, it'sit's kind of like you know,
you're catching the swarm yougotta just you gotta make the
right moves and you know realquiet and youʻll get them in
there.
Alexis Kerver (13:45):
And they're really sensitive to your energy
right? So you have to be calmand collected when you do this.
Daniel Dunnom (13:52):
Right? Yeah, it does, so that lady I forget what
she said but they're like nope,and just started flying out and
I'm puttin the lid on like, hey!yeah, that's like in there. Like
I try to, to get them in onearea, you know, they're not like
flying all over the house or,you know, I try to get it so
(14:15):
they can still have afunctioning house. You know, and
keep them out of their way asmuch as possible to keep people
from getting stung and like, youknow, teach them how to act
around the bees so they're notfreaked out. It's usually just
like moving slow. Like, youknow, a lot of times people
(14:37):
start swattin them or likebattin them, but like when you
move fast, like it alerts thebees like, oh, there might be
danger and then if you'reswatting them like slapping them
they'll like the bees see thatand like they assume you're
already getting stung. And thenit's like, you know, puts out
the signal to them to attackyou. Best thing to do if like
(15:01):
you got a bee buzzing around youthat's kind of like checking you
out is just to like do theeverybody's seen the meme with
like Homer Simpson like fadingback into the bushes and that
that's pretty much it you got todo just kind of like oh I got
stung and stuff like ooh freakinout you just kind of like Homer
Simpson in the bushes justslowly walk away get away from
(15:24):
the hives. most of the time ifbees are out and about they're
just they're just foraging andyou know after buzzing around
you they think you're a flower
Alexis Kerver (15:43):
so take it as a compliment if they come up to
greet you.
Daniel Dunnom (15:47):
Right right. And then another weird thing about
these is that they'll recognizeyour face like my bees you know
they're they're prettycomfortable around me and I
guess to bee my face to themlooks like like a really
intricate flower which I alwaysthought was really really
(16:08):
amazing
Alexis Kerver (16:11):
It does kind of look like a flower Oh. So are
you a one man show in thisoperation or do you have folks
that work with you or do youhave a team
Daniel Dunnom (16:27):
I'm pretty much a one man show I got a new helper
and but I have a I don't havelike any like official employees
as of yet I'm working on it youknow I want to be a job creator
(16:49):
but just just doing the best Ican with what I what I have
available so far but there'sthere's a lot of people that are
interested in bees and will helpyou out just for like a little
you know, some knowledge andthis it's it's there's a lot
lots of beekeeping so there's alot of people help you out just
(17:10):
to learn
Alexis Kerver (17:13):
which makes it you know, more realistic for the
opportunity to expand whenthere's that interest even to
learn about the practice. Sothat's exciting. And if you were
to expand what are you lookingat what is kind of your long
term vision if you don't mindsharing?
Daniel Dunnom (17:38):
I am well like I am really into like the honey
from like fruit tree crops andseems like a lot of the
beekeepers do not like I meanthey're into plants as well but
not like like I am so I reallyget into like the different
(18:00):
flows of nectar and pollen andthen I have an orchard so I can
I can see what the bees areafter and what they're going on
so yeah, I lost my I lost mytrain of thought
Alexis Kerver (18:15):
no worries so that you what you just sent
actually reminded me of aquestion so I'm curious about
your integration with the beesand the fruit crops do you have
I would assume that you know youutilize your fruit crops to
produce different is it flavorsis that? How does that work
Daniel Dunnom (18:34):
Yeah, Like this year, the mangoes bloom first
like end of December-January andthe mango honey is like you know
how mango trees are like reallythey got that sap and they're
like really sticky. Well thehoney is almost like that, it's
(18:57):
really like thick and like notsappy but it's like real sticky
and, and then like the lycheecomes on, and the lychee is like
real liquidity and really smoothand the nectar is like real
plentiful. So like I'll see itwhere like the mango they'll
serve fill in the frames andwith the mango and then like the
(19:20):
next part will be lychee and youcan tell the difference between
the two. So a lot of times themango and the lychee get mixed
together
Alexis Kerver (19:29):
And would you sell that then as mango lychee
honey?
Daniel Dunnom (19:36):
I do tell people like I got a pretty good idea
what they're going on but likethe bees can go wherever they
want. So like I don'tnecessarily know for sure. And
then to label your honey haslike a certain variety, like you
have to have like a PCR test andthose tests are like really
(19:57):
expensive. So like you prettymuch get a really, really super
super no and like, I have apretty good idea. But I'm not
like big enough to be likegetting all kinds of tests and
stuff like that. I mean, likeafter years of experience, I can
tell like what it looks like inthe frame and by the taste. But
(20:19):
it's always a little bitdifferent, like, oh, they might
have been getting a little bitof this or like, maybe this one
has a little bit of coconut inthere. So what I tell people is
I'm like, you know, it's like,you know, my educated guess.
Beekeepers best guess. And thatworks for most of them, you
know, because they always wantto hear what you think it is,
(20:40):
you know. And then like on thelychee, I would feel pretty
confident because it's suchlike, the bees love it so much.
Like they'll choose the lycheeover almost any other flower. So
that one I can kind of kind ofsay without like, you know, the
(21:04):
definitive PCR test.
Alexis Kerver (21:08):
And is that do you know that by just by sight
and the consistency of what itlooks like in the frame, or is
there also a distinctive flavorthat you notice?
Daniel Dunnom (21:20):
yeah, so lychee, it won't taste like the fruit
per se or at least not rightaway. But itʻll have like, like,
it'll be smooth and then it'snot too sweet. The mango is like
really super sweet but thelychee is like it's sweet, but
it's smooth. It's like reallygood for tea and then the
(21:40):
aftertaste it's like flowery andthen at the end it's kind of
little fruity, and yeah, so it'sgot like I always describe it as
having like flowery and fruitynotes which I have so many fruit
trees like my honey always haslike a fruity or flowery note,
so that's like a prettyconsistent thing. Yeah, and then
(22:04):
about expanding, Yeah, Idefinitely. I've talked to some
some other farmers that havereally huge orchards like 7-800
trees and that's where I'm like,that's kind of where I'm looking
to expand to some bigger put mybees at some bigger operations.
Alexis Kerver (22:26):
Do you have the space to do that on your own
land or you would move yourbees?
Daniel Dunnom (22:32):
Yeah, that's like one of the beauties of being a
beekeeper is like you don'tnecessarily have to have the
trees yourself you can just puton in areas you know, network
and yeah, I've got quite a fewyards but like yeah, then again
it's like you kind of spreadyourself then if you're running
(22:53):
to this yard in that yard andlike oh what if something
happens over here about thequestion about like motivation
like sometimes the bees justlike theyʻre going and going and
you don't have no choice but tojust like keep on keeping up
with them you know because theydon't they don't stop or nothing
(23:14):
and so it's kind of you know,and then when the bees give you
had a break when there isnʻtlike any pollen or nectar coming
on you know, it's definitely thebees keep me motivated for sure.
Sometimes it's kind of astruggle trying to keep up with
them because they're so sorelentless
Alexis Kerver (23:37):
and so if someone wanted to put a box in their
backyard and try to be keep intheir backyard is backyard
beekeeping you know, somethingthat you can sustain and produce
enough honey just for yourselfor do you really have to have
like a whole system operation?
Daniel Dunnom (23:58):
Yeah, so I get I get people that you know, come
and they they're interested ingetting like a beehive. But
without any like any like,classes or training about it,
like it can be a very likeexpensive hobby at first because
(24:22):
you gotta get all the equipmentand then you gotta buy the bees
and then you don't put them in agood spot. There's always a
chance that the bees just flyaway or like you don't know how
to like like, identify problemsin the hive. Like mites,
(24:42):
beetles, or you know, if youdon't if you don't have the
knowledge to take care of likethose, those issues issue is
like you're you know, it can bevery a very stressful hobby,
real quick. They just fly away.
Alexis Kerver (24:55):
Expensive and stressful hobby. And you said,
buy bees? You can't just grab,you know, like harvest the bees
from outside?
Daniel Dunnom (25:08):
Oh yeah, there's there's, there's, there's people
who get their start that way.
And that's probably one of thebetter ways to start because it
doesn't, I mean, you're justlike getting the boxes and the
frames and stuff but you can gocatch swarms, and you can get
put on a list to go catch them.
And sometimes they're likereally easy where you can just
(25:29):
like cut a branch and grab theswarm and away you go. And then
sometimes it's like, oh, it's ina wall or a ceiling or up on the
third story on the overhang or,you know, so like, they're not
always easy to get. And, andsometimes, like, it takes a lot
out of the bees catching them.
Alexis Kerver (25:51):
There's a lot of potential challenges and and,
you know, with maintaining theenvironmental conditions of the
box and the health of the bees,that you could really compromise
that whole swarm without thatfoundational knowledge. Are
there classes around? You're inPuna. So what are some classes
on Big Island that you knowabout for folks that would be
(26:14):
interested in beekeeping?
Daniel Dunnom (26:20):
I've been I've been wanting to do classes for a
while I haven't I haven't gottenany any going so far. But I'm
working on it. I always got togive a shout out to UH, they got
a really good certificateprogram. And it's pretty,
thorough. So that gives peoplelike a good solid foundation to
(26:44):
start. But also just yeah, justworking for a beekeeper and like
getting, because commercial,like the stuff, you know, that I
learned at the university. Andthen I worked for a commercial
beekeeper. And it's like, nightand day, totally different. So
(27:04):
like learning both was reallyimportant. So yeah, but just for
backyard. Yeah, I mean, youknow, you donʻt need to know
like know full scale, likecommercial kind of stuff.
Alexis Kerver (27:20):
If any listeners on on Big Island are interested,
they can come work with you.
They can come do an internshipwith you.
Daniel Dunnom (27:30):
Otherwise, yeah, my friend, Susan Hammer Collins.
She does be classes and she's areally great teacher and she's
up in Honokaʻa. And she doessome hands on classes. And
they're fairly inexpensive andshe's got all the equipment,
which is which is nice nothaving to get it shipped here.
(27:52):
And then like she's got thesuits. Her business is called
the Bird and Bee Hawaii. Andit's and it's it's nice to be
able to go and try on the suitand make sure it's because like
I've gotten all kinds of likesuits that I've ordered and
yeah, the ones that I've gotfrom her have been the best
because they you know try themon they fit. She gets good suits
(28:15):
that, you know, you can't getstung through so that's how he's
a plus. Kind of discouraging ifyou get stung through your suit.
And yeah, I've had I've had onesthat have got stung through so
Alexis Kerver (28:29):
How many times have you once done
Daniel Dunnom (28:33):
How many times Oh, like at this point probably
like in the 1000s after doing itfor Yeah, yeah, probably get
stung a good. Each time Ibeekeep I probably gets stung
once or twice at least. So
Alexis Kerver (28:51):
the bees die when they sting you right?
Daniel Dunnom (28:55):
Yeah, Most of the time it like happens like you
know like you know I'll be likeextracting honey and I won't
have my suit on I'll be in thehouse you know not by the bees
but one of the will be stuck inthere and I like step on it or
something or like I'll have abee that like hung on to me and
(29:19):
like go to wipe my neck orsomething and like oh I squashed
her and like now she's stung mebut they say like bee stings are
good for you, apitherapy. and alot of people with like
arthritis and like other chronicpain will sting themselves to
(29:40):
like boost their immune responseand people swear by it. I mean,
there's just as many people whosay like you're crazy, you know,
but there's people that itreally works for them. And
Alexis Kerver (29:55):
Thatʻs called apitherapy?
Daniel Dunnom (29:59):
Apitherapy Yeah.
Yeah, it sounds a lot nicer thanbee venom therapy. If youʻre
like theyʻre like "bee venom no"but you say apitherapy and there
like oh apitherapy, what's that?
Alexis Kerver (30:17):
Have you used it?
Or have you intentionally triedto heal certain ailments in your
body with that?
Daniel Dunnom (30:26):
It seems like the bees have some kind of like,
sense where theyʻll just stingme.
Alexis Kerver (30:32):
Theyʻre like, "your neck is messed up. I'm
gonna sing you right here!"
Daniel Dunnom (30:37):
Right and I'm like, Yeah, so when I get stung,
like, I have, like, a morepositive self talk thing about
it, where I'm just like, oh,yeah, I must have needed a sting
there. You know, oh, thank you.
Oh, my girls. Oh, they love me,you know. But I definitely
noticed, like, like, some, youknow, when I get stung like it,
(31:00):
it you know, those little like,nagging kind of pains and like
joints and stuff like that, itit, it goes away. So, I believe
in the power of the bee sting.
And that's why a lot of peoplethink that like beekeepers, like
live a long time, is becausethey're getting stung. Well, and
(31:25):
then all the honey and beeswaxand propolis and all the other
products of the hive. But Ithink the main thing is, is
getting stung.
Alexis Kerver (31:35):
Do you just make honey or do you do any value
added products with your honey?
Daniel Dunnom (31:42):
Um, with the honey, I make mead. I'm not like
on a commercial level with ityet but and then for those who
don't know, mead is honey wine.
So I do make a little bit ofthat just just for my my
personal consumption at thispoint. But it's something that
(32:04):
I'm interested in goingcommercial with in the future.
And then yeah, there's, there'sjust quite a few people out
there that are, you know,thinking about doing that, too.
So, so, you know, hopefully,hopefully I can get it going
before they do.
Alexis Kerver (32:22):
Or maybe you guys all come together and make the
first Hawaii Mead, Premium Mead.
Daniel Dunnom (32:31):
Right, I would love to do it like that, you
know, and like, because there'sso many different kinds of honey
from all over the island, likethe possibilities of different
mead flavors are endless. Soyeah, it would be yeah, I've
kind of thought about doing itlike that, like a sustainable
cooperative type where, youknow, we all have, like, you
(32:54):
know, a central location, we canbring our honeys and like
ferment them and, you know, getthem served to people and have
it all be legit, and you know,have it all shipped out to all
around the world. I think that'dbe a great way to market our
honey. You're on the becauseyeah, we got some good honey, I
think it's the best in theworld. And a lot of people agree
(33:16):
with me, but
Alexis Kerver (33:20):
If folks want to buy your honey, if folks want to
buy your honey, are you do youhave an online store? Or are you
only selling at markets? And ifso, which markets and what days?
Are you there so folks can comesupport you?
Daniel Dunnom (33:35):
I'm so I'm at Makuʻu Market every Sunday and
then I have been doing Volcanomarket on Thursday nights from
from three to six. And then theother markets are kind of hit or
miss but you know, sometimes Imake it to the other ones. Like
(33:57):
I'm always looking toward, youknow, getting into other ones or
you know, trying this one everyso often. But the two main ones
right now are Makuʻu market andthen the Volcano one on
Thursdays. And then I don't Idon't have an online store at
(34:17):
the moment but I am working onit. But it's kind of a slow
process but I do do mail order.
And then yeah, if you just ifyou just get a hold of me my
email or like my phone numberlike I can ship honey out
anywhere. And yeah, I'd be gladto send honey wherever. But I
(34:39):
don't have an onlinen store yet.
Alexis Kerver (34:43):
Weʻll include your, weʻll Include your email
address with this with thispodcast in the description so
that folks can reach out to you.
We have viewers all over theworld, so.
Daniel Dunnom (34:56):
Yeah?
Alexis Kerver (34:57):
Yeah, and this is this is really exciting to do
this podcast with you now inyour state in your current
stage. It'll be exciting towatch you blossom, no pun
intended, over the years, andsee and see what comes out with
this growth. And there's a lotof opportunity here for you even
(35:18):
to help steward this, thiscoalition of, of bee farmers and
mead makers and you know, it'svery inspiring to hear your
story and, and how passionateyou are and the relationships
that you have with these bees.
It helps me walk outside to seemy huge swarm of bees with a new
light if I can just enter thatspace thinking that I'm a
(35:41):
flower, maybe, maybe they'llrespond differently to me.
Daniel Dunnom (35:49):
Did you get a swarm of bees at your place?
Alexis Kerver (35:51):
Yeah, I've been meaning to reach out to you
about that. There's so many I amin a Lehua forest. They're
everywhere. So my problem iswith the puppies. Itʻs that I
also have these puppies and oneof them's already been stung
twice. And he's he completelyswells up. Yeah, yeah. So and,
(36:17):
you know, they they try to chasethem and they don't understand.
Daniel Dunnom (36:22):
Oh, my, my dog does that she's a regular honey
hound. But so like the bees getin the house, she'll chase them.
And yeah, sheʻll get stung.
Alexis Kerver (36:31):
so it just kind of is what it is. And I think
that's what that's you know,would you agree that that's a
secret to farming is sometimeswhen things happen, you just
have to go with it. There's,when we're trying to have
control over these situationsweʻre really just driving
ourselves crazy.
Daniel Dunnom (36:49):
Oh, right. Right.
Yeah. Like, Oh, am I gonna beable to stop this dog from going
by my beehives? Probably not.
But like, I think she'll learnher lesson eventually, you know,
and she has, you know, so. Yeah.
Alexis Kerver (37:07):
Awesome. Daniel, thank you so much for your time.
Is there any last things thatyou'd like to leave our
listeners with? Some piece ofadvice for a peace of mind?
Daniel Dunnom (37:18):
Um, I don't know.
But maybe I could, maybe I couldshare with everybody how to do a
little meditation techniquecalled Bee Breath.
Alexis Kerver (37:30):
Bee Breath. I love it. Letʻs do it!
Daniel Dunnom (37:34):
Yeah. Okay. So what you do is, if you ever like
have like racing thoughts, oryou just want to like clear your
mind really, really fast. It's atechnique called Bee Breath. And
what you do is you take a deepbreath through your nose, into
the bottom of your stomach. Andthen when you go to let it out,
(37:59):
you let it out through yourmouth, any buzz like a bee. But
you also at the same time, closeyour eyes and plug your ears. So
it's like, the vibrations all inyour head. Right? And so I'll do
it. So Iʻm taking a deepbreath... [buzzing]
(38:27):
Yeah, itʻs just so rushing
Alexis Kerver (38:30):
you feel like it vibrating the molecules in your
body.
Daniel Dunnom (38:38):
It's like a great way to reset and then if your
real stressed out just do twothree of them, you know, and
it's like, whoa. I like to dothat. Like before I get to my
bees it kind of like gets allthat like, you know, yucky
energy off of me and I can, youknow, get in there and do my
thing. It's great to do.
Alexis Kerver (39:01):
Can we do that together? Can we do a couple
buzz breaths. Will you guide methrough it? And then our
listeners can follow in.
Daniel Dunnom (39:13):
Okay. All right.
So should I explain it or justdo it?
Alexis Kerver (39:18):
Both? Yeah.
Daniel Dunnom (39:21):
All right. So I'll take a deep, well, and the
other thing is like when youplug your ears you like pull on
your lobe a little bit and thenplug yours. I'm not sure it's
like some kind of point orsomething.
Alexis Kerver (39:35):
So plug your ears and pull.
Daniel Dunnom (39:40):
Yeah, so you like you're doing like this? Yeah, I
forgot about that at first.
Alexis Kerver (39:49):
Oh, wow. That amplifies the buzz in my brain.
Daniel Dunnom (39:54):
Yeah, yeah, it's like okay, I'll do it.
(40:30):
[buzzing]
Alexis Kerver (40:32):
Amazing. It really reset the body
completely. What a powerfultool. You might have to have you
record a five minute guidedbuzzbee breath. That would be an
(40:57):
incredible resource. Especiallyfor our farmers, you know,
that's speaking their language.
Daniel Dunnom (41:06):
Right? Yeah. I think I think I might have to do
something like that I've been,I've been thinking about doing
little videos like, you know,little farming videos. You know.
Alexis Kerver (41:18):
I'll reach out to you and we'll make that
connection. We'll make thathappen.
Daniel Dunnom (41:24):
Right.
Alexis Kerver (41:26):
Wonderful.
Daniel, thank you so much againfor your time. It was great
chatting with you and having youhere in this space. And we look
forward to watching yourjourney.
Daniel Dunnom (41:37):
All right, thank you so much. And thank you for
having me. It's it's been it'sbeen a pleasure. And yeah, I
look forward to talking to youagain.
Alexis Kerver (41:47):
Aloha!
Daniel Dunnom (41:49):
Aloha!
Thao (41:53):
We want to thank our guests for their generosity and
Manado. We also want to thankall our ag producers throughout
the islands, and especiallythose we have heard on the
podcast for discussing ways theyaddress the physical, mental,
emotional, and spiritualdimensions of Hawaii ag
production. Each story eachvoice contributes to a broader
(42:15):
understanding of what it takesto survive and thrive as we feed
our communities, wherever youmay find yourself within our
island agricultural economies.
If you would like to share yourstory in our podcast, please
contact us. Thank you forlistening to the seeds of well
being voices from the fieldpodcast featuring their
perspectives of ag producersthroughout the Hubei islands. If
(42:39):
you have found it helpful,please follow like and share
this episode with others. And ifyou have any ideas about how we
can make it better, please letus know in the comments or use
the link on our website. Mahalofor tuning in.
The views, information, or opinions expressed during the
Seeds of Wellbeing series aresoely those of the individuals
involved and do not necessarilyrepresent those of the
University of Hawaii College ofTropical Agriculture and Human
Resources, our funders, or anyother affiliated organizations
in this project.
(00:23):
Welcome to a seeds of well beingvoices from the field podcast,
featuring voices of Hawaiiagricultural producers for
Hawaii agriculture producers.
These podcasts are made possibleby a grant from the University
of Hawaii College of TropicalAgriculture and Human Resources,
also known as CTAHR. And theseeds of wellbeing are so
project and is supported by agrant from the US Department of
(00:45):
Agriculture, National Instituteof Food and Agriculture, and the
Hawaii Department ofAgriculture.
Alexis Kerver (00:56):
Joining us today on Voices from the Field is
Daniel Dunnom. Aloha Daniel,Welcome. How are you doing?
Daniel Dunnom (01:05):
Aloha thanks for having me
Alexis Kerver (01:07):
Yeah, of course.
Thanks for being here today.
We're excited to hear from youand your experience in the
field. Why don't you go aheadand start with telling us a
little bit about who you are andwhat you do.
Daniel Dunnom (01:22):
My name is Daniel Dunnom. And I am a tropical
fruit farmer and Beekeeper. Ilive in Puna, in the Hawaiian
Paradise, Park subdivision, andI grow mangoes and lychee and
coconuts is my three main foodcrops and then and then I am
(01:48):
also a beekeeper, and I producea lot of honey. And I'm UH Hilo
alumni, I went for tropicalplant science and agroecology
and then I also picked upbeekeeping while I was at the
college and also got mycertificate and beekeeping so
(02:09):
Iʻve been using those skills inthe field, and I've made a
business. And I've beensuccessful in business like
bootstrapping it, and doing sogood so far.
Alexis Kerver (02:25):
That's wonderful.
And tell us a little bit moreabout your business.
Daniel Dunnom (02:31):
I started in 2018. Right, right before right
before the big 2018 eruption.
And yeah, I started out withlike a challenge right off the
bat, the the we had a little bitof ash fall and wiped out my
whole lychee crop and. Right.
(02:54):
And then yeah, I've dealt with,you know, pandemic and, you
know, crippling recession andall that sense. And I'm still
here. So
Alexis Kerver (03:06):
Let's talk a little bit about that. You know,
so part of our project seeds ofwell being is we're looking at
how can we better respond to thenatural stresses and the
anticipated stresses really oflife and farming. So when you
experienced that with yourlychee crops, what was one of
(03:27):
the first things that you did torespond to that? Honestly...
Daniel Dunnom (03:33):
Unless it's like [] or that you know, you're just
kind of in a state of shockanyway because like, you know,
impending doom you know, thelava might come your way and you
know, it was just kind of youknow, you gotta I meditate a lot
and I have a good you know,stretching routine and like, I
(03:54):
try to just stay calm and likeprepared to handle any any kind
of situations and then a lot ofit has to do with like, positive
self talk like in the face oflike unsurmountable
circumstances like one of thequestions I like to ask myself
is like, when I'm faced likewith one of those situations is
(04:18):
like, what what would aresilient farmer do? And yeah,
and then in that situation, likewhen the lava was coming, I just
you know, I did what I could doit I just got ready for next
season, you know, and then Istarted to branch out into other
(04:40):
things I started doing I hadn'thad bees yet at my place and I
eventually I got bees and youknow, some more stuff going in.
I got into other things likeorchids and you know, just
trying to diversify. You know,
Alexis Kerver (05:00):
It really was a catalyst for you to branch out
with your business and yourexperience and with your
beekeeping so that came afterthe lava flow. And this was
really all of your businessstarted after your education at
UH Hilo you said you were analumni with a tropical plant
(05:21):
science and agroecology. How didyou initially decide that that
was the route that you wanted togo versus some of the other You
know, working on a farm? Whatinspired you? Or what made you
decided that you wanted to growyour own crops and produce your
own food and then bring thatinto a business? What is that
(05:43):
spark for you?
Daniel Dunnom (05:45):
Right? Um, well, I'd always I'd always had like
a, you know, a vegetable garden.
And I was like, really intosustainability and like, grow my
own food and I just kind of, youknow, took a passion of mine and
something that I loved and, andturned it into something that I
could make money with. And thenyou know, like, when I first
(06:08):
started in agriculture, I hearda lot of "oh your gonna make no
money" and this isn't that like,"Oh, you want to be a farmer
really?" Like but then, I don'tknow it was just like, well, you
know, if I can if I can dosomething that I love, and it
(06:30):
makes me happy, you know? Andbecause you definitely don't You
don't you don't do beekeeping tolike get rich you know you do it
for the love of the bees and thelove of the honey and that's
important and you know that'syour main focus you know even if
you don't make a lot of moneyyou're still happy and you're
(06:53):
still propelled and but thelonger you stick it out the more
rewarding it is and you know
Alexis Kerver (07:22):
sounds like a key component to being a resilient
farmer is remembering your whyremembering why you do this,
what is it that keeps you going?
The love of bees and love ofhoney is a great reason why to
keep you motivated with beefarming.
Daniel Dunnom (07:39):
Right. channeling my inner Tony Robbins, like if
you find the the why the how thehow is easy. So, yeah, that's a
good question to ask, like, WhyWhy am I even doing this? You
know?
Alexis Kerver (07:58):
And that can be a daunting question for some
people, because sometimes wejust get so caught up in the day
to day of, of living that, youknow, sometimes we can get
drifted off from that intentionfrom that core reason that keeps
us motivated. And we're seeingsuch high levels of stress and
(08:19):
depression amongst our farmersin Hawaii. However, we also see
such a deeply rooted reason forwhy that intimate relationship
and connection to the land. Sowhat is what are some of our
issues? What do you think ishappening here? With that
disconnect,With overall well being, and the
(08:44):
operations of farming forfarmers here in Hawaii?
Daniel Dunnom (08:57):
Um, well, it's, it's Wow, that's like, That's a
deep question. The disconnect, Ithink a lot of it is due there's
a there's a lot of people outout there that understand and
(09:22):
they support local agricultureand they get it, but there's,
there's always that thing,consumer preference, you know,
and a lot of times like, peoplehave to be like, educated on
especially like with withbeekeeping and stuff like that,
like, with the honey. I like totry to bridge that gap by
(09:48):
bringing like an observationhive to the market and a lot of
times that's like, why, youknow, people have never seen
inside a beehive and you knowthey don't necessarily know like
all the great benefits of ofhoney or you know eaten like
(10:10):
fruits and things like that solike a little you know sciency
kind of little lesson on bees orwhatever it is like every week I
try to have like a littledifferent something something to
teach the kids
Alexis Kerver (10:29):
And you do this at markets with kids, or do you
go to schools?
Daniel Dunnom (10:35):
I've gotten invited a couple of teachers
have invited me and I've donethe the USDA career day up at
the Komohana extension. Andyeah, I've I've done a lot of
outreach for like beekeeping inthe community and stuff and but
(10:59):
yeah, mostly I just hit themarkets and I go to quite a few
different ones mostly Makuʻumarket but some other smaller
ones as well. I've been doingthe volcano night market and
sometimes I make it down toKalapana.
Alexis Kerver (11:13):
On a sidenote Have you ever considered getting
into not be extermination...
What is it called when bees arestuck inside your walls? And you
have to call someone to removethem?
Daniel Dunnom (11:27):
Bee removals. Oh yeah. I do quite a bit of those.
And yeah. Yeah, it's kinda it'skind of stressful, you know,
because you get you get peoplethat are freaking out because
they got bees in their house.
And usually, oh, they're like,oh, they just started coming in,
(11:49):
you know, it'd be really easythough. They just started coming
in and then they got like, awhole wall or ceiling full of
them. And then he got to keepthem calm. And then they like,
you know, they expect you todrop everything. You know, some
sometimes take like a week long,you know, it's not easy. Just to
like, get them out. Right? Openthe wall and you know, then a
(12:16):
lot of times people like, oh,no, don't cut my wall. It's
like, yeah, it's a real Yeah.
It's a real I don't know, touchysituation.
Alexis Kerver (12:33):
When you do the removals, do you put the folks
in suits? Or are, you know, arethey exposed? Because you're
wearing a suit to be protected?
Daniel Dunnom (12:41):
Yeah, yeah. One time one time I did that, like
the lady was like, reallyexcited because her it was just
a real simple one. It was like aswarm that had landed in a tree
and it was on a branch and itwas like a fairly easy removal.
And the lady was like, reallyinto it. And yeah, so I got her
(13:07):
in a suit, Iʻm going to cut thebranch. And like just this
lady's commentary, like theywent in the box just fine. And
like I'm getting them scooped inthere and like this lady just to
like I forget what she said butall of a sudden the bees where
like "uh uh" and theʻyre likeflying away and I'm like, trying
(13:29):
to smoke and like get back inthe box, I'm not gonna make this
mistake again. You know, it'sit's kind of like you know,
you're catching the swarm yougotta just you gotta make the
right moves and you know realquiet and youʻll get them in
there.
Alexis Kerver (13:45):
And they're really sensitive to your energy
right? So you have to be calmand collected when you do this.
Daniel Dunnom (13:52):
Right? Yeah, it does, so that lady I forget what
she said but they're like nope,and just started flying out and
I'm puttin the lid on like, hey!yeah, that's like in there. Like
I try to, to get them in onearea, you know, they're not like
flying all over the house or,you know, I try to get it so
(14:15):
they can still have afunctioning house. You know, and
keep them out of their way asmuch as possible to keep people
from getting stung and like, youknow, teach them how to act
around the bees so they're notfreaked out. It's usually just
like moving slow. Like, youknow, a lot of times people
(14:37):
start swattin them or likebattin them, but like when you
move fast, like it alerts thebees like, oh, there might be
danger and then if you'reswatting them like slapping them
they'll like the bees see thatand like they assume you're
already getting stung. And thenit's like, you know, puts out
the signal to them to attackyou. Best thing to do if like
(15:01):
you got a bee buzzing around youthat's kind of like checking you
out is just to like do theeverybody's seen the meme with
like Homer Simpson like fadingback into the bushes and that
that's pretty much it you got todo just kind of like oh I got
stung and stuff like ooh freakinout you just kind of like Homer
Simpson in the bushes justslowly walk away get away from
(15:24):
the hives. most of the time ifbees are out and about they're
just they're just foraging andyou know after buzzing around
you they think you're a flower
Alexis Kerver (15:43):
so take it as a compliment if they come up to
greet you.
Daniel Dunnom (15:47):
Right right. And then another weird thing about
these is that they'll recognizeyour face like my bees you know
they're they're prettycomfortable around me and I
guess to bee my face to themlooks like like a really
intricate flower which I alwaysthought was really really
(16:08):
amazing
Alexis Kerver (16:11):
It does kind of look like a flower Oh. So are
you a one man show in thisoperation or do you have folks
that work with you or do youhave a team
Daniel Dunnom (16:27):
I'm pretty much a one man show I got a new helper
and but I have a I don't havelike any like official employees
as of yet I'm working on it youknow I want to be a job creator
(16:49):
but just just doing the best Ican with what I what I have
available so far but there'sthere's a lot of people that are
interested in bees and will helpyou out just for like a little
you know, some knowledge andthis it's it's there's a lot
lots of beekeeping so there's alot of people help you out just
(17:10):
to learn
Alexis Kerver (17:13):
which makes it you know, more realistic for the
opportunity to expand whenthere's that interest even to
learn about the practice. Sothat's exciting. And if you were
to expand what are you lookingat what is kind of your long
term vision if you don't mindsharing?
Daniel Dunnom (17:38):
I am well like I am really into like the honey
from like fruit tree crops andseems like a lot of the
beekeepers do not like I meanthey're into plants as well but
not like like I am so I reallyget into like the different
(18:00):
flows of nectar and pollen andthen I have an orchard so I can
I can see what the bees areafter and what they're going on
so yeah, I lost my I lost mytrain of thought
Alexis Kerver (18:15):
no worries so that you what you just sent
actually reminded me of aquestion so I'm curious about
your integration with the beesand the fruit crops do you have
I would assume that you know youutilize your fruit crops to
produce different is it flavorsis that? How does that work
Daniel Dunnom (18:34):
Yeah, Like this year, the mangoes bloom first
like end of December-January andthe mango honey is like you know
how mango trees are like reallythey got that sap and they're
like really sticky. Well thehoney is almost like that, it's
(18:57):
really like thick and like notsappy but it's like real sticky
and, and then like the lycheecomes on, and the lychee is like
real liquidity and really smoothand the nectar is like real
plentiful. So like I'll see itwhere like the mango they'll
serve fill in the frames andwith the mango and then like the
(19:20):
next part will be lychee and youcan tell the difference between
the two. So a lot of times themango and the lychee get mixed
together
Alexis Kerver (19:29):
And would you sell that then as mango lychee
honey?
Daniel Dunnom (19:36):
I do tell people like I got a pretty good idea
what they're going on but likethe bees can go wherever they
want. So like I don'tnecessarily know for sure. And
then to label your honey haslike a certain variety, like you
have to have like a PCR test andthose tests are like really
(19:57):
expensive. So like you prettymuch get a really, really super
super no and like, I have apretty good idea. But I'm not
like big enough to be likegetting all kinds of tests and
stuff like that. I mean, likeafter years of experience, I can
tell like what it looks like inthe frame and by the taste. But
(20:19):
it's always a little bitdifferent, like, oh, they might
have been getting a little bitof this or like, maybe this one
has a little bit of coconut inthere. So what I tell people is
I'm like, you know, it's like,you know, my educated guess.
Beekeepers best guess. And thatworks for most of them, you
know, because they always wantto hear what you think it is,
(20:40):
you know. And then like on thelychee, I would feel pretty
confident because it's suchlike, the bees love it so much.
Like they'll choose the lycheeover almost any other flower. So
that one I can kind of kind ofsay without like, you know, the
(21:04):
definitive PCR test.
Alexis Kerver (21:08):
And is that do you know that by just by sight
and the consistency of what itlooks like in the frame, or is
there also a distinctive flavorthat you notice?
Daniel Dunnom (21:20):
yeah, so lychee, it won't taste like the fruit
per se or at least not rightaway. But itʻll have like, like,
it'll be smooth and then it'snot too sweet. The mango is like
really super sweet but thelychee is like it's sweet, but
it's smooth. It's like reallygood for tea and then the
(21:40):
aftertaste it's like flowery andthen at the end it's kind of
little fruity, and yeah, so it'sgot like I always describe it as
having like flowery and fruitynotes which I have so many fruit
trees like my honey always haslike a fruity or flowery note,
so that's like a prettyconsistent thing. Yeah, and then
(22:04):
about expanding, Yeah, Idefinitely. I've talked to some
some other farmers that havereally huge orchards like 7-800
trees and that's where I'm like,that's kind of where I'm looking
to expand to some bigger put mybees at some bigger operations.
Alexis Kerver (22:26):
Do you have the space to do that on your own
land or you would move yourbees?
Daniel Dunnom (22:32):
Yeah, that's like one of the beauties of being a
beekeeper is like you don'tnecessarily have to have the
trees yourself you can just puton in areas you know, network
and yeah, I've got quite a fewyards but like yeah, then again
it's like you kind of spreadyourself then if you're running
(22:53):
to this yard in that yard andlike oh what if something
happens over here about thequestion about like motivation
like sometimes the bees justlike theyʻre going and going and
you don't have no choice but tojust like keep on keeping up
with them you know because theydon't they don't stop or nothing
(23:14):
and so it's kind of you know,and then when the bees give you
had a break when there isnʻtlike any pollen or nectar coming
on you know, it's definitely thebees keep me motivated for sure.
Sometimes it's kind of astruggle trying to keep up with
them because they're so sorelentless
Alexis Kerver (23:37):
and so if someone wanted to put a box in their
backyard and try to be keep intheir backyard is backyard
beekeeping you know, somethingthat you can sustain and produce
enough honey just for yourselfor do you really have to have
like a whole system operation?
Daniel Dunnom (23:58):
Yeah, so I get I get people that you know, come
and they they're interested ingetting like a beehive. But
without any like any like,classes or training about it,
like it can be a very likeexpensive hobby at first because
(24:22):
you gotta get all the equipmentand then you gotta buy the bees
and then you don't put them in agood spot. There's always a
chance that the bees just flyaway or like you don't know how
to like like, identify problemsin the hive. Like mites,
(24:42):
beetles, or you know, if youdon't if you don't have the
knowledge to take care of likethose, those issues issue is
like you're you know, it can bevery a very stressful hobby,
real quick. They just fly away.
Alexis Kerver (24:55):
Expensive and stressful hobby. And you said,
buy bees? You can't just grab,you know, like harvest the bees
from outside?
Daniel Dunnom (25:08):
Oh yeah, there's there's, there's, there's people
who get their start that way.
And that's probably one of thebetter ways to start because it
doesn't, I mean, you're justlike getting the boxes and the
frames and stuff but you can gocatch swarms, and you can get
put on a list to go catch them.
And sometimes they're likereally easy where you can just
(25:29):
like cut a branch and grab theswarm and away you go. And then
sometimes it's like, oh, it's ina wall or a ceiling or up on the
third story on the overhang or,you know, so like, they're not
always easy to get. And, andsometimes, like, it takes a lot
out of the bees catching them.
Alexis Kerver (25:51):
There's a lot of potential challenges and and,
you know, with maintaining theenvironmental conditions of the
box and the health of the bees,that you could really compromise
that whole swarm without thatfoundational knowledge. Are
there classes around? You're inPuna. So what are some classes
on Big Island that you knowabout for folks that would be
(26:14):
interested in beekeeping?
Daniel Dunnom (26:20):
I've been I've been wanting to do classes for a
while I haven't I haven't gottenany any going so far. But I'm
working on it. I always got togive a shout out to UH, they got
a really good certificateprogram. And it's pretty,
thorough. So that gives peoplelike a good solid foundation to
(26:44):
start. But also just yeah, justworking for a beekeeper and like
getting, because commercial,like the stuff, you know, that I
learned at the university. Andthen I worked for a commercial
beekeeper. And it's like, nightand day, totally different. So
(27:04):
like learning both was reallyimportant. So yeah, but just for
backyard. Yeah, I mean, youknow, you donʻt need to know
like know full scale, likecommercial kind of stuff.
Alexis Kerver (27:20):
If any listeners on on Big Island are interested,
they can come work with you.
They can come do an internshipwith you.
Daniel Dunnom (27:30):
Otherwise, yeah, my friend, Susan Hammer Collins.
She does be classes and she's areally great teacher and she's
up in Honokaʻa. And she doessome hands on classes. And
they're fairly inexpensive andshe's got all the equipment,
which is which is nice nothaving to get it shipped here.
(27:52):
And then like she's got thesuits. Her business is called
the Bird and Bee Hawaii. Andit's and it's it's nice to be
able to go and try on the suitand make sure it's because like
I've gotten all kinds of likesuits that I've ordered and
yeah, the ones that I've gotfrom her have been the best
because they you know try themon they fit. She gets good suits
(28:15):
that, you know, you can't getstung through so that's how he's
a plus. Kind of discouraging ifyou get stung through your suit.
And yeah, I've had I've had onesthat have got stung through so
Alexis Kerver (28:29):
How many times have you once done
Daniel Dunnom (28:33):
How many times Oh, like at this point probably
like in the 1000s after doing itfor Yeah, yeah, probably get
stung a good. Each time Ibeekeep I probably gets stung
once or twice at least. So
Alexis Kerver (28:51):
the bees die when they sting you right?
Daniel Dunnom (28:55):
Yeah, Most of the time it like happens like you
know like you know I'll be likeextracting honey and I won't
have my suit on I'll be in thehouse you know not by the bees
but one of the will be stuck inthere and I like step on it or
something or like I'll have abee that like hung on to me and
(29:19):
like go to wipe my neck orsomething and like oh I squashed
her and like now she's stung mebut they say like bee stings are
good for you, apitherapy. and alot of people with like
arthritis and like other chronicpain will sting themselves to
(29:40):
like boost their immune responseand people swear by it. I mean,
there's just as many people whosay like you're crazy, you know,
but there's people that itreally works for them. And
Alexis Kerver (29:55):
Thatʻs called apitherapy?
Daniel Dunnom (29:59):
Apitherapy Yeah.
Yeah, it sounds a lot nicer thanbee venom therapy. If youʻre
like theyʻre like "bee venom no"but you say apitherapy and there
like oh apitherapy, what's that?
Alexis Kerver (30:17):
Have you used it?
Or have you intentionally triedto heal certain ailments in your
body with that?
Daniel Dunnom (30:26):
It seems like the bees have some kind of like,
sense where theyʻll just stingme.
Alexis Kerver (30:32):
Theyʻre like, "your neck is messed up. I'm
gonna sing you right here!"
Daniel Dunnom (30:37):
Right and I'm like, Yeah, so when I get stung,
like, I have, like, a morepositive self talk thing about
it, where I'm just like, oh,yeah, I must have needed a sting
there. You know, oh, thank you.
Oh, my girls. Oh, they love me,you know. But I definitely
noticed, like, like, some, youknow, when I get stung like it,
(31:00):
it you know, those little like,nagging kind of pains and like
joints and stuff like that, itit, it goes away. So, I believe
in the power of the bee sting.
And that's why a lot of peoplethink that like beekeepers, like
live a long time, is becausethey're getting stung. Well, and
(31:25):
then all the honey and beeswaxand propolis and all the other
products of the hive. But Ithink the main thing is, is
getting stung.
Alexis Kerver (31:35):
Do you just make honey or do you do any value
added products with your honey?
Daniel Dunnom (31:42):
Um, with the honey, I make mead. I'm not like
on a commercial level with ityet but and then for those who
don't know, mead is honey wine.
So I do make a little bit ofthat just just for my my
personal consumption at thispoint. But it's something that
(32:04):
I'm interested in goingcommercial with in the future.
And then yeah, there's, there'sjust quite a few people out
there that are, you know,thinking about doing that, too.
So, so, you know, hopefully,hopefully I can get it going
before they do.
Alexis Kerver (32:22):
Or maybe you guys all come together and make the
first Hawaii Mead, Premium Mead.
Daniel Dunnom (32:31):
Right, I would love to do it like that, you
know, and like, because there'sso many different kinds of honey
from all over the island, likethe possibilities of different
mead flavors are endless. Soyeah, it would be yeah, I've
kind of thought about doing itlike that, like a sustainable
cooperative type where, youknow, we all have, like, you
(32:54):
know, a central location, we canbring our honeys and like
ferment them and, you know, getthem served to people and have
it all be legit, and you know,have it all shipped out to all
around the world. I think that'dbe a great way to market our
honey. You're on the becauseyeah, we got some good honey, I
think it's the best in theworld. And a lot of people agree
(33:16):
with me, but
Alexis Kerver (33:20):
If folks want to buy your honey, if folks want to
buy your honey, are you do youhave an online store? Or are you
only selling at markets? And ifso, which markets and what days?
Are you there so folks can comesupport you?
Daniel Dunnom (33:35):
I'm so I'm at Makuʻu Market every Sunday and
then I have been doing Volcanomarket on Thursday nights from
from three to six. And then theother markets are kind of hit or
miss but you know, sometimes Imake it to the other ones. Like
(33:57):
I'm always looking toward, youknow, getting into other ones or
you know, trying this one everyso often. But the two main ones
right now are Makuʻu market andthen the Volcano one on
Thursdays. And then I don't Idon't have an online store at
(34:17):
the moment but I am working onit. But it's kind of a slow
process but I do do mail order.
And then yeah, if you just ifyou just get a hold of me my
email or like my phone numberlike I can ship honey out
anywhere. And yeah, I'd be gladto send honey wherever. But I
(34:39):
don't have an onlinen store yet.
Alexis Kerver (34:43):
Weʻll include your, weʻll Include your email
address with this with thispodcast in the description so
that folks can reach out to you.
We have viewers all over theworld, so.
Daniel Dunnom (34:56):
Yeah?
Alexis Kerver (34:57):
Yeah, and this is this is really exciting to do
this podcast with you now inyour state in your current
stage. It'll be exciting towatch you blossom, no pun
intended, over the years, andsee and see what comes out with
this growth. And there's a lotof opportunity here for you even
(35:18):
to help steward this, thiscoalition of, of bee farmers and
mead makers and you know, it'svery inspiring to hear your
story and, and how passionateyou are and the relationships
that you have with these bees.
It helps me walk outside to seemy huge swarm of bees with a new
light if I can just enter thatspace thinking that I'm a
(35:41):
flower, maybe, maybe they'llrespond differently to me.
Daniel Dunnom (35:49):
Did you get a swarm of bees at your place?
Alexis Kerver (35:51):
Yeah, I've been meaning to reach out to you
about that. There's so many I amin a Lehua forest. They're
everywhere. So my problem iswith the puppies. Itʻs that I
also have these puppies and oneof them's already been stung
twice. And he's he completelyswells up. Yeah, yeah. So and,
(36:17):
you know, they they try to chasethem and they don't understand.
Daniel Dunnom (36:22):
Oh, my, my dog does that she's a regular honey
hound. But so like the bees getin the house, she'll chase them.
And yeah, sheʻll get stung.
Alexis Kerver (36:31):
so it just kind of is what it is. And I think
that's what that's you know,would you agree that that's a
secret to farming is sometimeswhen things happen, you just
have to go with it. There's,when we're trying to have
control over these situationsweʻre really just driving
ourselves crazy.
Daniel Dunnom (36:49):
Oh, right. Right.
Yeah. Like, Oh, am I gonna beable to stop this dog from going
by my beehives? Probably not.
But like, I think she'll learnher lesson eventually, you know,
and she has, you know, so. Yeah.
Alexis Kerver (37:07):
Awesome. Daniel, thank you so much for your time.
Is there any last things thatyou'd like to leave our
listeners with? Some piece ofadvice for a peace of mind?
Daniel Dunnom (37:18):
Um, I don't know.
But maybe I could, maybe I couldshare with everybody how to do a
little meditation techniquecalled Bee Breath.
Alexis Kerver (37:30):
Bee Breath. I love it. Letʻs do it!
Daniel Dunnom (37:34):
Yeah. Okay. So what you do is, if you ever like
have like racing thoughts, oryou just want to like clear your
mind really, really fast. It's atechnique called Bee Breath. And
what you do is you take a deepbreath through your nose, into
the bottom of your stomach. Andthen when you go to let it out,
(37:59):
you let it out through yourmouth, any buzz like a bee. But
you also at the same time, closeyour eyes and plug your ears. So
it's like, the vibrations all inyour head. Right? And so I'll do
it. So Iʻm taking a deepbreath... [buzzing]
(38:27):
Yeah, itʻs just so rushing
Alexis Kerver (38:30):
you feel like it vibrating the molecules in your
body.
Daniel Dunnom (38:38):
It's like a great way to reset and then if your
real stressed out just do twothree of them, you know, and
it's like, whoa. I like to dothat. Like before I get to my
bees it kind of like gets allthat like, you know, yucky
energy off of me and I can, youknow, get in there and do my
thing. It's great to do.
Alexis Kerver (39:01):
Can we do that together? Can we do a couple
buzz breaths. Will you guide methrough it? And then our
listeners can follow in.
Daniel Dunnom (39:13):
Okay. All right.
So should I explain it or justdo it?
Alexis Kerver (39:18):
Both? Yeah.
Daniel Dunnom (39:21):
All right. So I'll take a deep, well, and the
other thing is like when youplug your ears you like pull on
your lobe a little bit and thenplug yours. I'm not sure it's
like some kind of point orsomething.
Alexis Kerver (39:35):
So plug your ears and pull.
Daniel Dunnom (39:40):
Yeah, so you like you're doing like this? Yeah, I
forgot about that at first.
Alexis Kerver (39:49):
Oh, wow. That amplifies the buzz in my brain.
Daniel Dunnom (39:54):
Yeah, yeah, it's like okay, I'll do it.
(40:30):
[buzzing]
Alexis Kerver (40:32):
Amazing. It really reset the body
completely. What a powerfultool. You might have to have you
record a five minute guidedbuzzbee breath. That would be an
(40:57):
incredible resource. Especiallyfor our farmers, you know,
that's speaking their language.
Daniel Dunnom (41:06):
Right? Yeah. I think I think I might have to do
something like that I've been,I've been thinking about doing
little videos like, you know,little farming videos. You know.
Alexis Kerver (41:18):
I'll reach out to you and we'll make that
connection. We'll make thathappen.
Daniel Dunnom (41:24):
Right.
Alexis Kerver (41:26):
Wonderful.
Daniel, thank you so much againfor your time. It was great
chatting with you and having youhere in this space. And we look
forward to watching yourjourney.
Daniel Dunnom (41:37):
All right, thank you so much. And thank you for
having me. It's it's been it'sbeen a pleasure. And yeah, I
look forward to talking to youagain.
Alexis Kerver (41:47):
Aloha!
Daniel Dunnom (41:49):
Aloha!
Thao (41:53):
We want to thank our guests for their generosity and
Manado. We also want to thankall our ag producers throughout
the islands, and especiallythose we have heard on the
podcast for discussing ways theyaddress the physical, mental,
emotional, and spiritualdimensions of Hawaii ag
production. Each story eachvoice contributes to a broader
(42:15):
understanding of what it takesto survive and thrive as we feed
our communities, wherever youmay find yourself within our
island agricultural economies.
If you would like to share yourstory in our podcast, please
contact us. Thank you forlistening to the seeds of well
being voices from the fieldpodcast featuring their
perspectives of ag producersthroughout the Hubei islands. If
(42:39):
you have found it helpful,please follow like and share
this episode with others. And ifyou have any ideas about how we
can make it better, please letus know in the comments or use
the link on our website. Mahalofor tuning in.
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