As summer fades, the bees are also beginning their preparations for the colder months.  So what better time to return with the next part of The Truth About Beekeeping deep dive!?

You may remember back in July I shared a super special interview with druid Chris Park, and today I have another expert voice to share their thoughts on my burning questions about bees.  We'll be treated to insight on community beekeeping, the difference between large scale industry and family led apiary, and more!  Please welcome Julie from Neve's Bees, and be sure to check out their story if you want to learn more about their local beeswax brand!

And be sure to keep posted for the upcoming 'finale' where I share what I have learned and my thoughts on bees, beeswax, honey, and beekeeping!

Why are bees important?

It is estimated that bees, and other pollinators, are responsible for pollinating around 80% of the food we eat. No pollination, no food!

What are your thoughts on beekeeping?

I am a beekeeper. I am occasionally asked whether beekeeping is an ethical thing to do. Here’s the way I see it:

I provide a box in which the bees live

I keep the box warm in the in the winter and cool in the summer

I keep the box dry

I do my best to prevent disease from infecting the box, or mice, wax moths and wasps from getting in the box

I make sure there is sufficient natural forage and fresh water near the box in the warmer months and in the winter I always put extra fondant in the box just in case the bees need it

I make sure there is enough space in the box for the bees to stay healthy and cool

The bees are free to leave the box and fly away at any time they chose….they don’t!

 

Are there any myths or assumptions about beekeeping that you would like to address?

I have seen various posts on Facebook about how beekeeping is cruel. No doubt there are some individuals who perhaps have less ethical practices, but fundamentally, it’s called bee KEEP ing – the objective is to keep your bees healthy and happy in their hives. No beekeeper can stop their bees from flying away at any time – surely if the bees were not happy, they would leave?

There are a few ‘myths’ I’ve seen on Facebook – one is that some beekeepers clip the queen bee’s wings to stop her from flying. Personally I don’t do this (it’s quite a tricky thing to do) but there are some very good reasons that this is done.

Firstly, it’s worth understanding that the queen bee only flies on two occasions in her life. When she has first hatched, she flies to get mated. Thereafter, she stays in her hive laying eggs – up to 1,500 each day. She doesn’t fly – the worker bees do this. Her job is to lay eggs – that’s it! Sometimes, if the colony grows too big for the hive, the bees will swarm – they grow a new queen, starve the old queen so she’s thin enough to fly and kick her out with half the bees (around 40,000 of them). If the queen has her wings clipped, she can’t fly and she will die BUT the 40,000 other bees will go back into the hive and survive. If she is not clipped, she, and the 40,000 other bees will fly away to try to find another place to live. 75% of these swarms will die in the wild as their natural habitat is so badly destroyed nowadays. So yes, clipping the queen’s wings means that, if the colony swarms, she will die, but this saves 40,000 other bees – personally I think this is a good practice – having seen a dead swarm – a large pile of thousands of dead bees - I would far rather just see one dead queen bee!

 

Can bees benefit from beekeeping?

Yes, they survive! 75% of all swarms die as their natural habitat has been so badly damaged by urbanisation

What is the link between beekeeping and bee conservation?

There are three main reasons that bees are dying out 1) loss of natural habitat 2) use of pesticides 3) climate change. If we can all plant beefriendly flowers, shrubs and trees, stop mowing dandelions and other ‘weeds’ that bees love, work with our local councils to keep verges full of wildflowers and not keep cutting them back, encourage farmers to leave strips. Join your local wildlife trust to see what you can do to help.

Is there a difference between individuals keeping bees and doing it large scale? How so?

Fundamentally, no beekeepers wants to lose their bees so I think animal husbandry is going to be similar. Some of the treatments you can choose for making sure there are no diseases in the hives are possibly different – similar to a human choosing to take Valium vs valerian I guess!

There are some practices that aren’t so nice, however, especially in some of the monoculture crops such as almonds in California – where bees are shipped in to pollinate the almonds. Because these bees’ only diet is Almond pollen and nectar, their immune systems are weakened (as yours would be if you only ate one type of food all day everyday) and they become susceptible to disease. Many Beekeepers won’t now take their bees to monocultures such as almonds anymore.

How do you actually harvest bee “ingredients”? What is the process?

The bees live in the brood box (down the bottom of the hive) then we put ‘supers’ which are smaller boxes on the top. Gradually, the bees fill these boxes with honey, capped with wax. Bees normally produce three times more than they need to get them through the winter. Most beekeepers take half of the supers and leave half for the bees. To harvest the honey, the beekeeper puts a ‘crown board’ between the full super at the top of the hive and the one below with a ‘one way door’ so as the bees leave the top super, they can’t get back into it. Once all the bees have left the super, the beekeeper takes this off the stack of boxes. Then we remove each frame, cut off the beeswax, spin out the honey, then put the frames and the super back onto the hive. The bees then start filling it up again.

Is this all safe for the bees? Are there any practices that might be harmful?

A beekeeper’s role is to keep the bees year after year. If a beekeeper was doing something harmful, he would lose his bees – they would either fly away or die – so they would stop doing this. Yes, it’s sometimes inevitable that a bee gets squashed when you put a heavy super back on, but we smoke the bees to keep them calm so they stay in the box. So no, apart from the monoculture issue, a beekeeper is not going to do something that’s harmful to his bees?

Are there any bee derived ingredients you do not think should be harvested (either at all or on a regular basis)?

[No comment provided]



Why do you use bee derived ingredients in your formulas?

Beeswax is an amazing material that’s been used in skincare for thousands of years. It’s a natural humectant that helps to seal moisture into the skin. Interestingly, the trendy skincare ingredient at the moment, hyaluronic acid, is also a humectant – same mode of action as beeswax and nowhere near as tried and tested!

When it comes to sourcing bee derived ingredients, what is important?
(How do you know the bees are being treated well, what red flags can you look for, are there any specific credentials that are important, differences in quality, what should a consumer know?)

I think it’s important to think about what the bees are foraging on – most small scale beekeepers will let their bees forage on wildflowers in the natural habitat. Some will take their hives to forage on something like heather which has a nice taste and, in this country, it’s likely to be interspersed with other forage to keep the bees healthy. There is lots of anecdotal evidence that local honey and bee products are very good for those suffering from hayfever. Some beekeepers will use chemicals to treat any disease but this is mainly done in the winter so these will long have left the hive before any honey is harvested. Also, in the UK all these treatments are certified safe to use by DEFRA. I understand that in some countries they can treat bees with any chemicals which could end up in the honey. Check the label – by law as UK beekeeper, we have to say where the honey comes from – if the label says ‘of many countries’ or such – be careful with it! Likewise, if you’re buying wax, check where it comes from!

It is thought that some commercial beekeepers will either feed their bees sugar, or dilute the honey with sugar or corn syrup. Whilst this doesn’t harm the bees, it’s a bit of a rip off for the customers and not as good for your health!

There are some interesting studies that suggest that Manuka honey is a bit of a con too – yes it’s good for you, but arguably honey harvested local to where you live is better for you (and is likely to cost a lot less than Manuka!)

If you have any further questions, do drop them in the comments below!  I will do my best to address them in the upcoming full article, and would love to find you answers.  And if you are interested in what Neve's Bees offers, you can find him in the following places:

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