CORNISH BEE-KEEPER TAKES UP THE CHALLENGE

Cornish beekeeper Mike Leverton responded to the call for action to restore a long forgotton cup back to its rightful county.

The gauntlet was thrown down to Cornish beekeepers  to enter the Royal Bath and West show’s Bees and Honey Competitions and compete for the prestigious “Cornwall Bee Keepers Association Challenge Cup”

The beautiful silver rosebowl, first awarded in 1949, has remained on the Bath & West Showground’s shelves – unwanted and unwon - for as many years as show organisers can remember.

It used to be vigorously competed for in the years when the Royal Bath & West Show moved to a different venue around the country each year – Plymouth, Truro, and Falmouth were regular ports of call. It made its final excursion to Cornwall in 1955 when it was held in Launceston.

But since the Show moved to its permanent home at the Bath & West Showground in 1965 the number of exhibitors and visitors making the grand trek up from Cornwall has tailed off. And the last time it was won and taken back to Cornwall was in1991.

Keen beekeeper Mrs Gillian Searle, editor of the Cornwall Beekeepers Association’s monthly magazine, issued the challenge to her 200 strong membership, urging them to enter this year’s bees and honey classes at the Show and compete for the trophy that is rightfully theirs.

Launching the challenge earlier this year, Mrs Searle from Bodmin said: “No-one has won this trophy for as long as I can remember. I know people might feel it is now a long way to travel up to the Show from Cornwall but I think it is a tragic shame that no-one from Cornwall competes for this beautiful trophy anymore.”

Mrs Searle hoped her appeal would jar Cornish people’s memories and get them buzzing up the A30 with their entries for this year’s Show which took place at the Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet, Somerset, from May 30th to June 2nd.

And beekeeper Mike Leverton from Lelant, near St Ives, Cornwall leapt forward to take up the challenge. His was the only entry from Cornwall but the judges said he thoroughly deserved the award anyway because of the top quality of his honey. He was, said Bees and Honey Chief Steward Chris Rawlings, a master showman in the bee-keeping and honey world.

Mr Leverton, who started making honey nine years ago and also swept the board at the Royal Cornwall Show recently , said he was delighted to be taking the Bath & West trophy back to Cornwall at last. He was presented with the trophy by Lady Caroline Cameron, the wife of the President of the Royal Bath and West of England Society, Lord ewen Cameron.

The Cornwall Bee Keepers Association Challenge Cup is awarded to the resident member of the Cornwall Bee-Keepers’ Association who notches up the most points  in classes for light, medium, dark and set honey.

It is just one of hundreds of trophies and prizes competed for each year at the Show which is sponsored by EDF Energy, attracts over 10,000 entries from all over the country for classes ranging from art and alpacas, to shoeing and steam engines, and saw over 152,000 visitors flooding through the gates.