Factors Influencing the Management of High-Value Agricultural Products (Stingless Bees) under the BCG Economic Model: A Case Study of Ban Thap Ma Stingless Bee Farming Promotion Community Enterprise, Rayong Province

Abstract

Stingless bees are high-potential economic insects serving as a key mechanism to drive the BCG economy model from the grassroots to sustainable agricultural systems. This research primarily aimed to analyze the causal factors affecting the levels of implementation and management based on the BCG economy model among 104 members of the Ban Thap Ma Stingless Bee Rearing Promotion Community Enterprise in Rayong Province. The findings revealed that the farmers' overall level of BCG implementation and management was at a moderate level. When categorized by dimension, the green economy dimension achieved the highest mean score due to eco-friendly practices, followed by the bio-economy dimension in honey production, whereas the circular economy dimension yielded the lowest mean score due to a lack of technology for valorizing bio-waste materials in nests. Furthermore, hypothesis testing indicated that differing socio-economic structural factors significantly affected the levels of BCG management at a statistical significance level of 0.05. Specifically, the elderly farmer group exhibited a higher mean score in the circular economy dimension than other age groups, attributed to their local wisdom in self-reliance and farm resource circulation. Conversely, differences in primary occupations and funding sources led to distinct variations in the bio-economy dimension. The study underscores the necessity of developing extension approaches tailored to the specific potential and needs of each farmer group to overcome practical limitations and sustainably elevate this community enterprise toward high-value agriculture standards.