Getting a real buzz promoting business
Print Edition
A BEEKEEPER said yesterday that he braved letting almost half a million bees settle on his semi-naked body in order to promote his honey.
She Ping, a 34-year-old honey merchant from the southwestern metropolis of Chongqing, covered himself in some 460,000 bees weighing more than 45 kilograms for a group of French photographers on Wednesday.
The world record for the practice — known as “bee bearding” — is held by Indian Vipin Seth who has donned a mantle of bees weighing 61.4kg, according to Guinness World Records video channel.
The brave souls who attempt bee bearding generally attract the insects by placing a queen bee in a small cage that hangs from their body.
Pictures of She’s stunt show him posing stripped to the waist beside more than a dozen hives, before the insects swarm over his body, with only a bag placed on his head offering protection from stings.
“To be honest, I felt very nervous, but I did it to promote my honey,” She said. “I’m used to dealing with bees and started these activities when I was about 22,” he added.
“The main preparation is avoiding taking a shower, avoiding using soap in general, as that can excite the bees,” She said.
Chongqing has emerged as something of a hotspot for China’s bee bearders, with several local honey merchants having tried the stunt and honey shops displaying signs showing them covered in the insects visible in the city.
A beekeeper couple in northwest China were married wearing suits of bees in 2009.
China is one of the world's major producers of honey, though its exports have been banned in several countries due to fears of counterfeiting.
She admitted that his attempt fell short of a world record, but claims that he does hold a record for carrying out the stunt without wearing clothes.
“Of the people who do it naked, I'm probably the most awesome,” he said.
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