The state Department of Agriculture is sponsoring a public meeting on bees Friday at Maui Community College.

The meeting will feature Michael Andree of the federally funded Bee Informed Partnership, which helps determine management practices that reduce bee colony losses around the country.

Andree is visiting Hawaii to collect data on bees.

He’ll be joined by Lauren Rusert, a Hawaii Department of Agriculture’s apiary program technician, who will provide information on the local bee situation.

The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. in Kalama room 103 at Maui Community College.

The apiary program encourages Hawaii beekeepers to join the Beekeepers Registry, which allows the state to keep beekeepers informed of developments in the industry. To learn more about the Hawaii Apiary Program, go to  http://hawaii.gov/hdoa/pi/ppc/bee-folder/bee-informed.