Robert Brewer
Robert Brewer serves as senior public service associate for The University of Georgia and as a county extension agent in agriculture and natural resources for Towns County. He has worked for the last 18 years to become a leader in apiculture education. In fact, he co-founded the Young Harris Beekeeping Institute and expanded it to include the Georgia Master Beekeeping Program, a program that has since been internationally adopted. He has demonstrated great leadership by organizing his local beekeeping association, serving as a past president of the Georgia Beekeepers Association, working as a member of the board of directors for the Eastern Apiculture Society, and founding the Mountain Beekeepers Association.
Whole-heartedly committed to outreach, Brewer develops apicultural programs for a wide-reaching audience. Locally, he has given basic apiculture presentations to 2,500 school children, who refer to him as “the Bee Man.” Brewer is frequently called upon by beekeeping and non-beekeeping groups alike to give lectures and presentations. He is a well-known speaker, not only locally, but on a state-wide, national, and international basis as well.
Brewer tirelessly works to identify causes of disorders that affect honeybees and takes on the challenge of keeping local beekeepers’ bees healthy and productive. His work in this regard is a true reflection of his dedication to the mission of The University of Georgia, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, UGA Cooperative Extension, and Public Service and Outreach.
Brewer’s 18 years of expertise as a honey show judge earned him the opportunity to be among the first honey judges to be certified by the United Kingdom’s Welsh Beekeepers Association, and the only American to hold the title of senior Welsh honey judge. Michael Young, Chairman of the Institute of Northern Ireland Beekeepers, commends Brewer for his “zeal toward promoting all fields of apiculture this side of the Atlantic.” Currently, he serves as the state-side director of the program, and conducts a two-year honey-judging course in conjunction with the Young Harris Beekeeping Institute.