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Show Bountiful East Stake Opens Hen Money Processing Plant The public is invited to attend at-tend an open house at a new honey processing facility in North Salt Lake. LOCATED at 941 North Main Street, the facility will have its open house Saturday, July 16 from 10a.m. to 3 p.m. Sponsored by the Bountiful Utah East Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the 3,900 square foot plant will be producing honey for the Church's welfare program. FEATURES at the open house include a glass-enclosed glass-enclosed working hive and other exhibits, guided tours, a short film on bees and refreshments. The plant is on five acres just west of the Woods Cross exit of 1-15. Much of the land is growing clover to provide a good honey-flow. DEAN Cannon of Bountiful is managing director of the project. "We started the project in the spring of 1975," Mr. Cannon said. "We intentionally inten-tionally curtailed . honey production that year as our objective was to raise bees. Last year we were up to 3,000 pounds of honey. "Eventually we expect to produce as much as 50,000 pounds per year. We are committed to provide 10,000 pounds of honey in 1977, but the lack of moisture may cause us problems. We even lost some bees because of the cold, rainy spell in May. Weather plays a big part in the success of this project." ALL THE labor for the project is donated by the 1,200 families in the Bountiful Utah East S'ake. The cinder-block plant itself was designed by Robert T. Dewey, a Bountiful architect who donated his services. "We have been averaging 300 to 500 hours a month of donated labor," Mr. Cannon said. 'The work is seasonal to a large extent. We've had as many as 150 people participate par-ticipate some months in the project. Other months it has been down to 20 or 25. "PERSONS receiving welfare wel-fare assistance from the Church are encouraged to help with the project. Fortunately, For-tunately, we don't have many people in this stake of about 5,000 people needing assistance. assis-tance. "The honey goes into what is known as the Kaysville Area Bishops' Storehouse. From there it is distributed through the LDS Church's welfare organization to needy recipients. "TYPICALLY, an area's needs will be met first and then any surplus would be distributed by the welfare program or go into storage for emergency use," Mr. Cannon pointed out. "I doubt that our present production is producing enough to go beyond the requirements of this area." However, the welfare project was designed with the future in mind. "We have an ambitious growth plan for the next several years," Mr. Cannon said. "The plant was designed to accommodate that growth." THE facility has been inspected in-spected and approved by the Davis County Board of Health and by the State Department of Agriculture. "We are licensed by the State to keep bees and we've made arrangements ar-rangements for Board of Health food handler's permits during processing time," Mr. Cannon said. Known as welfare commodity com-modity production projects, the LDS Church produces necessities for its poor in quite a variety of items. Some of the nearby stakes raise cattle, others have dairy farms, and still otners produce eggs. BEES are known not only for the production of honey, but also for the vital pollina-. tion of flowers and trees." Based in hives on land west of the airport and near Syracuse, Centerville, Boun-; tiful and North Salt Lake, the bees will be making a substantial sub-stantial contribution to the communities. "I immediately think of Bishop Norman Miller's cherry tree at his home on Bountiful's east bench," Mr. Cannon said. "The tree's annual an-nual output of fruit was mediocre. Then a neighbor placed a beehive in his yard. In no time the bees were attracted at-tracted to the cherry tree and the pollination process began. That year and since Bishop Miller has had an excellent crop of cherries." WHEN asked if this effort conflicts with local commercial, commer-cial, apiary activities, Mr. Cannon stated that "An intentional in-tentional effort has been made to select beekeeping sites that are not normally in conflict with commercial -beekeeping activities." |