Tsutsumi Honeybeesprofile

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Farm and ForestryProduction and Marketing Prole for

Honey Bees(Apis mellifera)

By Lorna H. Tsutsumi and Darcy E. Oishi

Specialty Crops or Pacifc Island Agroorestry (http://agroorestry.net/scps)


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Farm and Forestry Production and Marketing Prole for Honey Bees by Lorna H. Tsutsumi and Darcy E. Oishi 2

INTRODUCTION

Tere are several bee species that are cultivated or theirproducts and pollination services but the most widely usedspecies is the honey bee, Apis melliera. Honey bees areound on all land masses except or the extreme poles. InHawaii and in the Pacifc, there is a great potential or bee-keeping at all scales. Rural areas in the Pacifc are ideal orsupporting beekeeping activities because o the abundant

year round oral sources that can provide enough honey oramily and/or community needs with the possibility o addi-tional income rom the selling surplus honey. Additionally,because o geographic isolation, Pacifc island beekeepersace reduced risk or new bee diseases and pests than mostother beekeepers. Beekeepers can develop commercial op-erations to sell honey and other value-added products orexport, especially i branded with localized oral sourcesor locations. In parts o the Pacifc, beekeeping activitiesare becoming established initially at a small-scale with thepossibility o larger commercial operations developing. InHawaii, honey production reached its peak in the early1940s when it was ranked as the 8 th leading export behindlarge agricultural crops such as sugar, pineapple (Ananas co-mosus), banana (Musa spp.), macadamia nut (Macadamiaintegriolia), coee (Coea arabica), and papaya (Carica pa-paya) (Roddy and Arita-sutsumi, 1997). Honey as an in-dustry has the potential or resurgence because o the trendtoward agricultural diversifcation with crops that requireinsect pollination.

USES AND PRODUCTS

Te most well known and utilized o the harvestable prod-

ucts rom honey bees is honey. Honey can be consumedas soon as it is harvested rom the hive (or stored or lateruse) or it can be used to make a variety o value-added ood

products such as desserts, dressings, and mead. Honey canalso be used as an ingredient in other value-added productssuch as cosmetics and health supplements. Other harvestable products derived rom honey bee cultivation includepollen, wax, propolis, royal jelly, venom, packaged bees, andqueen bees. Products such as pollen and royal jelly can beconsumed in their natural state rom the hive but are usually mixed with other ingredients to produce medicinal orhealth supplements. Other raw products such as propolisand wax need to be processed into a more stable or usableorm and then used or a variety o value-added productsincluding cosmetics, candles, and medicinal ointments ortinctures. Venom is a specialized product with a limited medicinal market. Queen bee and package bee producers arespecialized beekeepers that utilize their hives or the purpose o producing bees or sale.

Pollination services are an important source o beekeeperincome, especially on the U.S. mainland. Tis is an essentialservice to ensure maximum ruit yields, especially or largemonocrops (e.g., almonds, oranges, apples, watermelon)

In Hawaii and in the Pacifc, beekeepers oen negotiate atrade or land use in exchange or pollination services. Pollination services perormed by honey bees make them anessential component on agricultural lands as well as in locaecosystems that are dependent on insect pollinators.

ORIGIN OF HONEY BEE CULTIVATION

People recognized thousands o years ago that certain typeso bees were associated with highly prized honey. In areas oArica, Asia, and South America, people continue the generations-old practice o collecting honey rom wild bee hives

People probably observed that bees would move into hollow cavities such as vases or clay pots and the honey romsuch colonies could be more easily harvested than rom wild

Lef: Feral hive in a tree hollow. Kurtistown, Hawaii. Right: Langstroth bee hives with roos or rain protection at the University oHawaii at Hilo Farm, Panaewa, Hawaii.


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Specialty Crops or Pacifc Island Agroorestry (http://agroorestry.net/scps) 3

hives. Providing these spaces and encouraging bees to usethem as hives were probably the earliest attempts to culti-

vate bees or purposes o harvesting their hive products. In1851, Langstroth, considered the ather o modern daybeekeeping, developed the frst movable hive that allowedor rames to be removed rom the hive, the honey extractedrom the rame, and the rame placed back into the hive re-sulting in little harm to the colony. Te movable hive andimproved beekeeping methods increased the eciency oproducing honey bee hive products and allowed the servic-ing o agricultural crops requiring pollination.

THE HONEY BEE AND ITS RELATIVES

Since honey bees belong to the genus Apis, which in Latinmeans bee, the prefx api is oen used in beekeepingterms such as, apiarist, a beekeeper or honey armer; api-ary, the location o bee hives; apiculture, the cultivation orarming o bees; and apitherapy, the use o bee products orhealth purposes.

Te ocial common name (approved by the commonnames committee o the Entomological Society o America)orApis melliera is the honey bee. Other English names in-clude: honeybee (without a space), Western honey bee, andEastern honey bee. Since honey bees are global in distribu-tion, there is a name or honey bee in most languages. Inthe Pacifc where it is cultivated, the honey bee is known insome languages as

Fiji: oniHawaii: nalo melePalau: hatsSamoa: lago meliahiti: miel abeilleonga: honeVanuatu: lenakel

Tis social insect lives in a colony o several thousand beesand is in the order Hymenoptera, amily Apidae, and sub

amily Apinae. Te Asiatic, Eastern, or Indian honey bee(Apis cerana Fabricius, also known asApis (cerana) indicais native to Asia and is also cultivated or honey and pollination. Te use o this species is localized to the East in countries such as India, Japan, and China (Kapil, 1971). Howeverbecause o the larger amounts o honey and other productsthat can be harvested rom an A. melliera hive, many beekeepers in these areas are converting to this species. woother species in the genusApis are native to southern Asiabut cannot be cultivated. Tese species,Apis dorsata Fabricius, the Giant or rock bee and Apis forea Fabricius, the little or dwar bee, build only single comb nests with minimal

amounts o harvestable honey (Lindauer, 1957). Troughout the remainder o text, the common name o honey beeor bee is used in reerence toApis melliera unless otherwisespecifed.

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION

Te native range or the honey bee is Europe, Arica, and theNear East. Selection and adaptation to the biotic (e.g., nativeplant species) and abiotic (e.g., climate) actors in these dierent regions resulted in anatomical and behavioral changes in the honey bee leading to the development o distinct

subspecies or races (Ruttner, 1968). Tere are a total o11 subspecies that originated in Europe, three o which areused commonly in small scale or commercial bee operations or by hobbyist beekeepers. One subspecies isApis meliera carnica Pollmann, commonly known as the Carniolanbee. Its homeland is the southern part o the Austrian Alpsand the North Balkan (Yugoslavia). It is considered by manyas the gentlest among the dierent races with long tongues(6.46.8 mm), which make this race ideal or the pollinationo oral sources that have deep nectaries. Te hair cover

Lef: Honey bee worker gathering nectar and pollen in Panaewa, Hawaii. Right: Gather coee blossom nectar in North Kona, Hawaii


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age is grey to brown. Another subspecies is Apis mellieramelliera L., the German bee. Its original homeland is con-sidered to be all o Europe north and west o the Alps. Tisrace is generally aggressive with relatively large bodies andshort tongues (5.76.4 mm). Te third species rom EuropeisApis melliera ligustica Spinola, the Italian bee. Te origi-nal homeland is Italy except or Sicily. Tis race is generallysmaller than the German bee with relatively long tongues(6.36.6 mm). Tis race is very calm and orms strongbreeding colonies. Tere are six subspecies that originatedin the Middle East, one o which is used commercially, Apismelliera caucasica Pollmann, the Caucasian bee. Te home-land or this race is the valleys o the Central Caucasus. Teabdomen is dark with brown spots. Te race has very longtongues (up to 7.2 mm). Tis race uses a lot o propolis butis known to be gentle and calm on the combs. None o the 11subspecies or races rom Arica is used commercially in theU.S. and the Pacifc but one that is well known and is a prob-lem or both homeowners and beekeepers in the U.S. andCentral/South America isApis melliera scutellata Lepeletier

which is commonly known as the Arican, Aricanized, orkiller bee.

HONEY BEE IMPORTATION TO HAWAII

Te frst successul introduction o honey bees to the Hawai-ian Islands occurred on October 21, 1857. Initial shipmentsto Hawaii included Italian, Carniolan, and Caucasian beesin addition to the original German bees. But on September17, 1908, the territory instituted a ban on importing pack-aged bees as a means to prevent the accidental introductiono bee diseases and pests. Te ban remains in eect today.

Tus, the only races that exist in the Hawaiian Islands to-day originated rom these our races (Fullaway, 1909). Inmore recent times, honey bee semen or artifcial insemina-tion, allowed under quarantine regulations, is imported orbreeding purposes.

TEMPERATURE AND CLIMATIC

RANGE

In order to y, the internal temperature o the hon-ey bee must be at least 35C (95F) which is alsothe temperature maintained in the center o the

hive. Te optimal air temperature or oraging is2225C (71.677F). Below 710C (44.650F),bees become immobile due to cold and above 38C(100.4F) bee activity stops due to excessive heat,although honey bees can tolerate temperaturesas high as 50C (122F) or short periods o time.Because o their large range o temperature toler-ance, honey bees can be ound in latitudes romthe equator to the Arctic Circle (Graham, 1992) aslong as there are plant sources to provide adequate

pollen and nectar or ood. Since honey bees usually live inenclosed spaces, rain is not a limiting actor but the lack owater or cooling the hive and or drinking can prevent establishment in arid areas.

BIOLOGY

Colony composition

A honey bee colony is made up o three classes or castes: onequeen, several hundred drones, and several thousand workers. Te queen is a ertile emale that lays the eggs or thecolony. Te eggs are laid in honeycomb cells and aer thelarvae hatch, it is the responsibility o the workers to care orthe developing young. Te drones are males that are responsible or mating with the queen. Te workers are sterile emales that perorm the remaining duties or the hive whichinclude: eeding o the young, deense o the hive, buildinghoney comb, maintenance o the hive, and collection andproduction o ood needed or the survival o the colony.

AnatomyTe honey bee has three body parts, the head, thorax, andabdomen. Te head has one pair o antennae, one pair ocompound eyes and a set o mouthparts. Te thorax has twowings and three pairs o legs. Te abdomen varies in shapeamong the three classes. Te queen can be recognized by herlarge size and relatively long abdomen in comparison to theworker bees. Her stinger is barbless and is used only in fghtswith other queens. Drones can be recognized by their largeeyes and rounder body. Te drone does not have a stingerBecause o the duties perormed by the workers, there aremany anatomical eatures unique to this class. Workers havea barbed stinger that is connected to the poison sac that isused in deense o the hive. Once imbedded, the stinger cannot easily be removed and continues to inject poison into

Queen bee (center o photo) being ed and groomed by workers.


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the intruder. On the second pair o legs, there is a pollenpick which is used to remove the pollen pellet that is oundin the pollen basket or corbiculum located on the third pairo legs. Te mouthparts o the worker are designed to ex-tract nectar rom owering plants and or soening waxused in making honeycomb.

Development

Te eggs o all three classes are white and banana-shaped.Te queen lays eggs into worker, drone, or queen cells. With-in 3 days, the eggs o all three classes hatch into larvae. Telarvae are ed and cared or by nurse worker bees. Te larvaeo all classes are ed royal jelly or the frst three days. Royal

jelly is a special protein-rich substance produced by nurseworker bees. Aer 3 days, the larvae in the drone and workercells are ed a mixture o diluted honey and pollen known as

bee bread. In comparison, the larvae in the queen cells areed royal jelly or the duration o their eeding period. Aerthe eeding stage, the larvae develop into a non-eeding pu-pal stage. At this stage, the cells o all three classes are sealed,

rom which they emerge as adults. Te developmental pe-riod or the worker rom egg to emerging adult is 21 days.Te queen takes 16 days and the drone develops in 24 days.

BEEKEEPING BASICS

Basic parts o a hive

In the wild, honey bees can be ound in tree hollows, on theoutside o well shaded trees, inside structures like housesand sheds, or other undisturbed places that provide ad-equate space, and are dark and well ventilated. In the past,people used wooden boxes, woven baskets, or hollowed logsto cultivate bees so that the honey and other products couldbe easily harvested in comparison to collecting rom wildhoney bee hives. People learned that colonies could be culti-

vated in movable hives with removable interior rames thatcould be replaced without disrupting the rest o the hive.Te Langstroth or modern day hive is in standard use bybeekeepers today.

Te basic Langstroth hive consists o one to several hivebodies, a bottom board and a cover. Te hive body is a our-sided box with standard inside dimensions o 373 mm x 465mm (14-11/16 in x 18-5/16 in). Te depth o the hive body

is variable, but only the deep-body 243 mm (9-9/16 in) andthe shallow-body 146 mm (5-3/4 in) are commonly used inHawaii. Tese hive bodies can be stacked. Frames that ftinto the hive bodies come in standard dimensions.

In assembling the hive, the bottom board is placed on a standto keep the hive o the ground. Te stand can be hollowtiles, bricks, a wooden bench or specially designed moatsstands where ants are a problem. Te hive bodies are placedon top o the bottom board and then the cover on top. Tere

Top: Honeycomb cells being lled with nectar and pollen gath-ered rom the eld and stored as honey and bee bread. MiddleLarvae in royal jelly, a protein rich ood, in unsealed cells. Bot-tom: Unsealed cells with worker larvae and wax sealed cells withworker pupae.


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is a screen called the queen excluder (which canbe purchased through a bee supply company) be-tween two hive bodies that confnes the queen toone part o the hive. Te hive bodies that are belowthe queen excluder and where the queen is con-fned, are called the brood chamber(s) named orthe developing bee eggs, larvae, and pupae (brood).Usually the hive bodies used or the brood cham-bers are the deep type. Te hive bodies above thequeen excluder are used or the storage o honeyand are called supers. Te use o a queen excluderensures that the rames in the super contain onlyhoney. Many small-scale operations and hobbyistspreer the shallow type or supers because the ex-cessive weight o deep hive bodies containing hon-ey-flled rames. Te queen excluder is not neededi the hive is maintained primarily or pollinationpurposes. Te entrance to the hive is at the bot-tom and is created by an opening in the bottomboard. In most areas o Hawaii and in other Pa-

cifc regions that have high rainall, roofng shouldbe added to prevent water damage to the outsideand inside o the hive.

Hive management

Hawaiis climate is relatively mild throughout theyear and there is usually some type o oweringplant at any given time. Beekeeping activity occursall year, unlike in temperate areas where cold tem-peratures and the lack o owering plants restricthoney bee activity during the winter. However,even in Hawaii, larger nectar ows occur in the

spring. Beekeepers all into two categories: migra-tory beekeepers that move their hives into areaswith owering plants and non-migratory bee-keepers who do not move their hives at all. Non-migratory beekeepers must pay close attentionto the amount o honey removed rom each hiveto insure that during times o little owering in their area,the bees have adequate ood supplies until the next set oowering plants produce nectar and pollen. In drier areasa water source may be needed. Additional hive bodies needto be added when bees are actively collecting nectar. In ad-

dition to insuring adequate space, ood, and water, beekeep-ers should also check to make sure there are no apparentdiseases or pests. Hives should be inspected at least once amonth or honey readiness and or overall health. Poor hivemanagement and neglect can result in reduced honey pro-duction and pollination.

Protective clothing

While no clothing is entirely sting proo, specialized cloth-ing can keep beekeepers well ventilated while providing

a high level o protection rom bee stings. Te ollowingclothing is recommended and can be purchased rom beesupply companies:

1. Bee suit. Usually made rom a cotton/polyester blendthe bee suit covers the entire body and should be wornloose.

2. Helmet and veil. Te helmet can be made o variousmaterials such as plastic or straw. Te veil is worn overthe helmet and is made o screen material that allowsmaximum sight and ventilation or the beekeeper during use. Te veil can be designed to be connected to thebee suit with a zipper or is attached around the body bystring. Another type o headgear combines the helmetand veil in what is termed a hatless veil that can be zippered to the suit as well.

Top: Empty rame held with a rame grip and ready or placement into ahive. Bottom lef: Frame with drawn out honeycomb. Bottom right: Poorhive management and neglect o bee hives.


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3. Gloves. Gloves can be o cloth or leather and have ven-tilation panels on the sleeve area. Te gloves are wornover the hands and lower sleeve portion o the suit.

4. Shoes and leg straps. Covered shoes are recommendedwhen working with bees. Leg straps are recommendedor bees that are more aggressive. Te leg straps areused to close the bottom o the pant leg so that the beesdo not crawl up into the suit. Masking tape is an inex-

pensive means o closing the bottom o the legs.Equipment

Beekeepers use certain equipment to maintain hives and orharvesting products. Te basic equipment needed is as ol-lows:

1. Te smoker produces smoke that is blown into thehive prior to opening the hive and occasionally whilethe beekeeper is working inside the hive. Smoke has

a calming eect on bees because it masks the alarmpheromone (chemical substance emitted rom beeswhen the hive is threatened) o worker bees so otherworker bees are not alerted to the potential threat o anintruder (Visscher, 1995). o start a smoker, paper isinserted into the smoker and lit. Aer the fre has started, dense, dried material such as leaves, wood chipsburlap, or rolled cardboard is added. Te cover o thesmoker is then closed and the bellow side o the smokeris pumped to produce a cool smoke. Cool smoke haslittle associated heat and no ames.

2. Te hive tool is a multiunctional metal pry bar designed or beekeeping. It is used to pry open the hiveand loosen rames, to scrape o built up propolis, andto pull nails.

3. Te bee brush is used to remove bees rom the ramesand parts o the hive during inspection. It is a light

Lef: Bee suit with hatless veil, gloves, and covered shoes. Panaewa, Hawaii. Top right: Beekeeping equipment. From lef to right, hivetool, bee brush, and rame grip. Bottom right: Lighted smoker lled with ironwood (Casuarina sp.) needles.


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weight brush which should be held at a 45 angle tobrush bees rom rames and other hive parts with theleast amount o trauma.

4. Te rame grip is a metal clamp that is spring-loaded.When squeezed, the grip holds the top bar o a rameand helps to remove it rom the hive or honey removalor inspection.

Inspecting a hive

With proper equipment and protective clothing, the bee-keeper can comortably and saely inspect a hive or thequantity o harvestable honey and other products and to as-sess the health o the colony. Te basic procedure is as ol-lows:

Start smoker and make sure there is adequate materialon hand so that it can be reflled i necessary.

Smoke entrance to the hive. Wait several seconds. Us-ing the hive tool, pry open the hive and smoke the tops

o the rames. Close the cover and wait several seconds.Remove cover and set on the side o the hive. Scrapeo excess propolis that has built up on the inside o thecover.

When inspecting the hive or honey, rames above thequeen excluder should be checked or the proportiono uncapped and capped cells. I both sides o the rameare at least 75% capped, the rame is ready to be re-moved or extraction.

When inspecting a hive or health, remove a ramerom below the queen excluder. Te eggs within thecells should be white in color. Te larvae should be apearl color and the pupae should be sealed in domeshaped cells. Te sealed cells should be clustered anduniormly sealed.

CURRENT PRODUCTIONHoney and wax production in Hawaii

In 2007, there were 40 operations with 10,000 colonies producing an average o 41.7 kg (92 lb) per colony with an average price o $3.48/kg ($1.58/lb). Wax production in Hawaiwas 2.7 M (6,000 lb) in 2007 and the price o wax $6.75kg ($2.94/lb) (DOA, 2007) Te honey and wax prices reecthe combined price rom wholesale, retail, and cooperativemarkets.

Te two largest beekeeping operations are located on theisland o Hawaii. Tese two operations ollow continentaU.S. practices o moving hives to ollow seasonal oweringin particular or macadamia nut, hia lehua (Metrosideros

polymorpha), and Christmas berry (Schinus terebinthiolius)Moving o hives, mild climatic conditions, and the abundance o nectar ow rom dierent oral sources year roundmake Hawaii an ideal location or honey production.

Lef: Smoking hive or inspection at the University o Hawaii at Hilo Farm, Panaewa, Hawaii. Right: Frame o mostly wax-cappedhoney and some uncapped honey (right side o rame).


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Table 1. Hawaii honey production data (US$) (Hawaii

DOA, 2009)

Year# o opera-tions

# o coloniesyield/colony(kg)

averageprice/kg

2001 30 8,000 39.5 $1.92

2002 30 7,000 61.7 $2.45

2003 29 7,000 51.7 $3.20

2004 31 8,000 43.5 $3.56

2005 34 9,000 59.4 $3.152006 35 10,000 42.2 $2.62

2007 40 10,000 41.7 $3.48

Honey and wax production in the United States(including Hawaii)

In 2007, there were 2,443,000 colonies in the U.S. produc-ing an average o 27.5 kg (60.7 lb) o honey per colony. Teaverage price o honey was $2.37/kg ($1.07/lb) or a totalproduction value o $159,763,000. In 2008, there was as 8%increase in honey production, although the number o colo-

nies decreased compared with 2007. Tere were 2,301,000colonies producing an average o 31.7 kg (69.9 lb) o honeyper colony. Te average price was $3.11/kg ($1.41/lb) or atotal production value o $226,814,000. Te National Agri-cultural Statistics Service (NASS) compared prices or 2007and 2008 (NASS, 2009). Te survey reects all producerswith fve or more colonies and includes retail, cooperative,and private sales combined.

Table 2. U.S. production by honey type (/kg) (NASS,

2009)

Category Co-op/Private Retail Combined

White honeys227 (2007)

306 (2008)

381 (2007)

424 (2008)

231 (2007)

311 (2008)

Amber honeys215 (2007)

295 (2008)

414(2007)

453 (2008)

235 (2007)

307 (2008)

Specialty honeys293 (2007)

299 (2008)

642 (2007)

668 (2008)

387 (2007)

436 (2008)

Combined honeys220 (2007)

295 (2008)

451 (2007)

484 (2008)

237 (2007)

311 (2008)

In 2007, Hawaiis honey yield per colony was the second

highest to Missouri that had 47.63 kg (105 lb) per colony.Te value o production or Hawaii and Missouri were$3,967,000 and $5,253,000, respectively. North Dakota hadthe largest number o colonies among all states with 420,000colonies or the production value o $28,594,000.

In 2006, the U.S. exported 3,176 M (3,494 ) o honey,primarily to Canada, Japan, Israel, and Korea. During thissame period, the U.S. imported 125,939 M (138,533 ) ohoney primarily rom China, Argentina, Canada, India, and

Brazil (FAS, Oce o Global Analysis, Agricultural Statistics2008).

Honey (and wax) production worldwide

World honey production was over 1 million M (1.1 million ) in 1993 (FAO, 1993). Between the two basic marketsegments; table (direct consumption) and industrial (cosmetic, pharmaceutical, baking purposes), a majority o thehoney was sold as table honey. In 2003, China was the largest producer o honey in the world, producing over 310,756M (341,831 ) and consumed 146,112 M (160,723 )Te average customs value was $0.52/kg ($0.226/lb). TeChinese government encourages beekeeping as a means tosupplement rural incomes. Te U.S. was the second largestproducer with 77,110 M (84,821 ) ollowed by Argentina. Argentina exports over 90% o its honey and is the second largest exporter o honey behind China. On the worldmarket, the U.S. has a dicult time competing. In order tocompete against cheaper oreign honey, niche and specialtymarkets or honey and other products have been success

ully developed in the U.S. and Hawaii and urther marketsneed to be developed to be competitive with lower pricedhoneys rom China and Argentina.

Although no world wax fgures are available, the FAO estimates that approximately 17,00030,000 M (18,70033,000 ) o wax was produced in 2003.

Honey bee activity in the Pacifc

Although honey bees were frst introduced into the Pacifcin the mid 19th century, bee related activities did not de

velop into promising industries until the 1970s. In 2001

a joint project between New Zealand and the Secretariato the Pacifc Community (SPC) was conducted, the frstphase o the Feasibility o Apiculture in the Pacifc programwhich was designed to strengthen beekeeping activities inthe island nations o Samoa, Solomon Islands, onga, NiueCook Islands (Rarotonga, Mangaia, Atiu), Fiji Islands, u

valu, Pitcairn island, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Kiribatand Wallis & Futuna (Driscoll, undated). Te SPC identifed several potential bee products that can be producedwithin the Pacifc Islands. In addition to honey, these otherproducts include: propolis, beeswax, beauty aids, medicinalqueen bees, packaged bees, and beekeeping tools (Driscoll

undated). In 2006, a Regional Honey Standards Development Workshop was held in Fiji to urther expand on thegrowing honey industry in the Pacifc. Te specifc goals othe workshop participants (rom Fiji, Kiribati, Niue, PalauPapua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, onga, andVanuatu) were to increase the production and standardso honey, tap into niche and regional markets, and elevatehoney rom a subsistence crop to a viable export. Agriculturally, this industry has been prioritized by many Pacifcisland nations. Presently, beekeeping activities are limited


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on some islands but are thriving on others such as in Fiji,where the annual honey production increased by 65.8% to494 M (543 ) in 2007 (Fiji imes, 2008). Te importanceo beekeeping in Fiji is acknowledged through the issuingo Fijian stamps showing bee hives, bees, a beekeeper, and achild holding a bottle labeled Fiji honey.

DISEASES AND CONTROL

Honey bee diseases all into two categories, brood and adultbee diseases. Te primary brood diseases in Hawaii areAmerican and European oulbrood and Chalkbrood. Teprimary adult disease in Hawaii is Nosema. As a precaution,i a beekeeper suspects a disease, equipment or inspecting ahive should be sterilized beore reuse to prevent the spreado disease. Although these are the primary brood and adultdiseases, there have been no recent reports o them caus-ing substantial losses to apiaries in Hawaii. Regular hiveinspection can help prevent the occurrence o these seriousdiseases.

American Foulbrood (AFB). A spore orming bacteriacalled Bacillus larvae causes AFB. Te basic symptoms in-clude punctured, sunken wax cappings o sealed brood, ascattered brood pattern, a strong oul odor, and sticky, deadremains o the larvae in open cells. Le uncontrolled, AFBcan spread throughout an apiary and destroy all the hives inthe area. Burning o all inected hives (to destroy the bacte-ria and spores) or treatment with the commercially availableantibiotic oxytetracycline during early stages o inestation.

European Foulbrood (EFB). A non-spore-orming bac-teria, Streptococcus pluton, causes EFB. EFB symptoms in-clude punctured, sunken wax cappings o sealed brood, a

souring odor, a scattered brood pattern, and twisted deadlarvae at the base o the cell that are not sticky. reatment orthis disease is to re-queen (remove the present queen with anew queen giving the colony a reproductive break and theworkers time to remove the diseased larvae and pupae) or touse the antibiotic oxytetracycline. Similar to AFB, i EFB isnot treated it can spread and destroy all the hives in the area.

Chalkbrood. Chalkbrood is caused by the ungus Asco-sphaera apis. Te most obvious symptom is dead larvaecovered with powdery white or white-black uzz. Tis oc-curs when there is a lot o moisture in the hive caused by

poor ventilation or excessive rainall in the area. Basic treat-ment is to move the hive to a drier location, place the hivein more direct sun, or widen the entrance to create bettercirculation within the hive. Re-queening can also minimizeChalkbrood but there is no chemotherapeutic treatmentcommercially available. Tis ungal disease is most preva-lent in areas with high moisture levels such as in Hawaiiand other Pacifc islands. Tus, special care must be takenin site selection to insure good hive ventilation. Hives can

recover rom this disease with no treatment as long as good

ventilation is restored.

Nosema. Nosema is caused by the protozoans Nosema apisand Nosema cerana. It aects queen, drone, and workeradults. Symptoms include large numbers o bees crawlingat the base o the hive that are unable to y and vomitingobserved as yellow liquid streaks on the bottom board. Tequeen, i inected with Nosema, has a decrease in egg-layingcapacity. When dissecting a bee suspected with Nosemaconfrmation is made by inspecting the midgut. I the midgut is swollen and white in color and bees are displaying theabove-mentioned symptoms, Nosema is the probable cause

Control is with an antibiotic, bicyclohexylammonium umagillin. Chen et al. (2007) indicates that Nosema is oundin Hawaii and in other parts o the U.S. and considered oneo the most prominent adult bee diseases. Antibiotic treatment is required and should be applied as directed on thelabel or this disease will spread and destroy all hives.

Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Tis disorder has notbeen identifed in Hawaii. CCD can be recognized by thesudden decline o a large number o worker bees rom a hive

Top: Mummied white larvae in cells caused by ChalkbroodBottom: Wax moth adult and larval damage to honey comb cellswith excrement and silk remains.


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Te cause is presently not known but researchers have asso-ciated this disorder with several potential causes includingthe varroa mite, acute paralysis virus, pesticides, geneticallymodifed crops, and radiation. In the U.S., colony losseswere approximately 29% rom September 2008 to April 2009rom all causes, although CCD was reportedly responsibleor 26% o all colony deaths (ScienceDaily, 2009).

PESTS AND CONTROLWax moth. In Hawaii, the greater wax moth (Galleria mel-lonella) accounts or most o the damage to honeycomb,even when the comb has been removed rom the hive andstored or reuse.Te wax moth larvae burrow through thehoneycomb cells leaving excrement and silk-like remainswhich leave the honeycomb unusable or the storage o pol-len, honey, or brood. Te pupae can be ound on the topbars o the rames in the brood chamber. Usually, the waxmoth is only present in weakened hives. Several umigantsare available, but the most common includes the active in-gredient paradichlrobenzene. Since the wax moth attacksonly weakened hives, treatment is required or the hives willdie. When wax cappings are collected during the honey ex-traction process, they need to be cleaned and processed sothat the wax moth does not use the wax or ood and devel-opment.

Little re ant (LFA). LFA, Wasmannia auropunctata, is asmall orange colored, slow moving ant that can inict pain-ul bites. Tese ants live in trees as well as on the ground.Similar to the red imported fre ant (RIFA, Solenopsis in-victa), ound in temperate areas, LFA invades hives or thehoney and the brood resulting, i unattended, in the death o

the colony. LFA was frst discovered on the island o Hawaiiin 1999. At present, inestations o LFA have also been iden-tifed on Kauai and Maui. Moats at the base o stands andinsecticide applications around the hives are the only mea-sures that have been eective. Tere are commercial insecti-cides that are available which can be used around honey beehives (HDOA, 2007). Care should be taken, as some o theactive ingredients used or ant control are extremely toxic tobees. Insecticidal sprays should be avoided i possible.

Varroa or Asiatic bee mite. Te varroa mite (Varroa de-structor) became established in the Western world in the

1950s and was discovered in North America (Florida andWisconsin) in 1987. By 1988, the varroa mite was detectedin twelve U.S. states. Until recently, this mite was not oundin Hawaii. Te absence o this mite was a valuable market-ing tool or queen rearing businesses on Hawaii Island. Temite was frst discovered on Oahu in April 2007 and then onthe island o Hawaii in August 2008 (Ramadan et al., 2008).Presently, the mite is widespread on Oahu and limited toparts o the island o Hawaii (rom Hilo south to Kapohoand Captain Cook south to Phala). Te mite can aect all

stages by eeding on the blood (haemolymph) o the larvaepupae, and adults. One o the most damaging eects o the

varroa mite is the transmission o viruses resulting in suchcharacteristics as wing deormation in adults. Detection othe mite at early stages can be made by visually inspectingbrood with a brood comb. Te mite preers drone brood. Analternative method is to use sticky boards placed at the bottom o the hive box. A plastic screen keeps the bees romsticking to the board but any mites that naturally drop o obees in the hive will be trapped.

reatments can be purchased through bee supply companies. In addition to miticides, there are a variety o non-toxic controls or cultural controls that can be used. For smallscale production, powdered sugar dusted directly onto thebees can be used to reduce mite populations. Care shouldbe taken to prevent the sugar rom entering into the cellsAnother cultural control method is the use o super cellrames. Super cell rames are rames that are smaller in sizethan normal comb cells. Larvae that develop in a super cellhave a shorter developmental time, which slows mite popu

lation growth. Using drone rames is another viable contro

Top: Moat stand to prevent LFA inestation to hive rom grounddwelling ants. Panaewa, Hawaii. Instructions or this stand areavailable at (Tsutsumi et al., undated). Bottom: Varroa mites(dark spots) on a worker larva removed rom a capped cell.


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method. Varroa mite emales preerentially lay their eggs indrone brood cells. Aer 34 weeks in the brood chamber,the drone rames can be removed and killed by reezing or24 hours. Tis process will reduce the rate o varroa mitebuildup within the hive. Commercial companies are alsodeveloping mite controls that are specifc to Hawaii and areapplicable to tropical regions.

Small hive beetle. One o the most destructive o hive pests

is the small hive beetle (SHB),Aethinia tumida. Itis a smallsap beetle native to Arica. Although not ound in Hawaii,the SHB is now common in the mainland U.S. and Australia.SHB larvae eed on honey, pollen, wax, and honey bee eggsand larvae. SHB eeding activity destroys the capping andcomb and their waste causes the honey to become discol-ored and may encourage the ermentation o honey, render-ing it unsellable. Heavy inestations can lead to abandoningo hives and may necessitate the destruction o hive boxes,comb, and all other material. Te humid, tropical condi-tions o many Pacifc Islands are ideal or this beetle, increas-ing the risk o it reaching dicult or uncontrollable levels

rapidly. Detection can be made dicult as larvae could bemistaken or the wax moth larvae. Adult beetles can be mis-taken or other sap beetles present in the Pacifc islands.

Tropilaelaps mite. Less well known than other bee mites,the ropilaelaps mite (Tropilaelaps spp.) represents thegreatest threat to beekeeping in the Pacifc and mainlandU.S. It is widespread in Southeast Asia. Like the varroa mite,the ropilaelaps are ectoparasites that attack honey bees anda ew other species oApis species. It is an obligate parasiteand cannot survive or more than a week away rom beebrood. Mite populations can grow rapidly all year round

even in temperate climates (Camphor et al., 2005) leading tobrood mortality and reduced longevity o the adult bees. Ul-timately, heavy ropilaelaps inestations can cause collapseo the hive, making it a more signifcant pest than the varroamite (Laigo and Morse, 1968). Also, like the varroa mite, itcan vector viruses and diseases (Forgren, 2009). reatmentoptions include umigants that are available through beesupply companies. According to Culliney (2003), there wereno known inestations o this mite rom bee samples takenrom the islands o Kauai, Oahu, Maui, and Hawaii duringa survey taken in 2000 and 2001. Presently, there are no re-ports o this mite in Hawaii.

Tracheal mite. Te tracheal mite (Acarapis woodi) is alreadypresent and established on the mainland U.S. and much othe world. Unlike varroa and ropilaelaps, the tracheal miteis an endoparasite. Te tracheal mite lives within the tracheaor breathing tubes o the bee. Te mites live, breed, and eedwithin the trachea where they penetrate the tracheal wallsand eed on the haemolymph (blood) o the bees. Heavilyinested bees show signs o scarring o the tracheal tissueand exhibit higher than normal bacterial counts. Te mites

are spread through bee to bee contact and can only surviveor a short period o time away rom a honey bee host. Olderworker and queen bees seem to develop resistance to trachealmites. Heavily inested bees can die and collapse o the hivecan occur. Chemical treatments can be purchased throughbee supply companies. An alternative control method is toplace vegetable oil patties on the top bars o rames betweenhive bodies. Te vegetable oil patties are made with a ratio otwo parts granulated sugar to one part vegetable shorteningTe bees walk on the patties within the hive which allowsthe oil in the patties to spread on the bees, reducing recognition by the mite o the bee as its host. A survey or this mitetaken in 2000 and 2001 showed no inestations on all themajor Hawaiian Islands (Culliney, 2003). Tis mite has stilnot been reported in Hawaii.

Other pests of the hive. In the Pacifc, the most prominentpests o the hive are ants, toads, and termites. Because thewood used or the hive bodies is untreated, termites caneed and inhabit the bodies and wood rame pieces, making the removal o the rames rom the hive body dicult

at best and stacking o the hive bodies impossible. In orderto prevent termite inestations, the hives and rames need tobe inspected on a regular monthly basis. Once inested, thehive bodies and rames need to be replaced. In addition toLFA, other ant species can enter the hive or honey and protein (brood). Physical barriers such as stands coated withan adhesive or placed into a water moat are eective. oadseed on adult bees as they exit or enter the hive. Standsmade with bricks or tiles elevate the hive so that toads cannot reach the bees. Tese stands also keep the hive o theground, preventing termite and ant inestations and reduc

ing water damage to the hive.Pesticides

Pesticides, chemical substances that are used to kill pestsare commonly ound in agricultural settings where honeybees are active. Many o these pesticides are toxic to honeybees and beekeepers should be aware o the type o pesticides being applied in their area. o reduce the possibility opesticide poisoning, it is prudent to locate hives at least 90 m(300 ) rom any treated felds. Beekeepers should look orhigh amounts o dead bees (1,000 or more per day) at thebase o the hive as an indicator o severe pesticide poisoning

Additional symptoms o pesticide poisoning include: overlyaggressive bees, bees that are unable to y, dead brood inront o the hive entrance, and a poor egg-laying pattern bythe queen.

Since minimal or no use o pesticides in agricultural areas with honey bees is recommended, a specialty market isquickly developing or organic honey. Organic honey mustmeet strict organic certifcation in its production, process


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ing, and packaging. At least 6.4 km radius rom the hivemust be pesticide-ree.

HARVESTABLE PRODUCTS FROM THE HIVE

Honey

Honey bees make honey rom the nectar they collect romplants. Foraging worker bees ingest nectar and store it in

their honey stomach to be carried back to the hive. Te nec-tar is then placed into a honeycomb cell to undergo the pro-cess o evaporation and sugar changes. Beore the honey-comb cell is capped with wax, the liquid inside the cell thatis between nectar and honey is called green honey. Beescap the cell with wax when all the sugar changes have takenplace and the moisture content o the liquid is below 20%.Aer capping, the honey within the capped cell is reerredto as ripe honey. Whether in the cell or extracted, ripehoney can last indefnitely. In addition to water, the majorcomponents in honey are several sugars, primarily glucoseand ructose and a small amount o sucrose. Less than 1% o

honey is made up o acids, proteins, and ash.Tere are dierent ways to describe or classiy honey. Tefrst is by the plant source o the nectar that was used col-lected. When bees gather the nectar rom a primary plantsource, the honey is usually labeled with the source, such asmacadamia nut, coee, kiawe (Prosopis julifora), or hialehua. Honey that is rom one plant source is also known asmonooral. Sometimes a combination o two plant namesis included such as macadamia nut/hia lehua or citrus/eu-calyptus. When the plant source is unknown or there aremany sources, the honey is labeled by seasons (e.g., winter,

summer) or given a locality name (e.g., Volcano, Kona) oran exotic marketable label (e.g., lava gold, Hawaiian sun-set). Honey that is rom more than one plant source is alsoknown as polyoral.

Honey contains over 180 dierent substances, which is whyit is nearly impossible to manuacture artifcially. Te com-position and nutritional value also varies depending on theoral source used in making the honey (Krell, 1996).

Other characteristics are also used to classiy honey. Ex-tracted honey has been removed rom the cells using gravity,centriugal orce, or straining. I the honey has no visible

crystals, it is called extracted liquid honey. I the bottomportion o the container has visible crystals, it is called ex-tracted partially crystallized honey and i the entire honeyis crystallized in the container, it is reerred to as extractedcrystallized honey. Crystallization occurs when the glucoseprecipitates out o the honey. According to the NationalHoney Board, the amount o crystallization is dependent onseveral actors including the amount o glucose in the honey,small particles in the honey (such as pollen, propolis, wax,or air bubbles), and storage conditions (White, 1992).

Top: Honey labeled with location (Ka). Bottom: Honey labeledwith location and plant source (Big Island hia lehua, right).

Table 3. Nutritional value per Tbsp (21 g)

Water 3.6 g Minerals

Fructose 17.3 g Calcium 1.0 mg

Glucose 8.1 g Iron 0.05 mg

Maltose 1.5 g Zinc 0.03 mg

Sucrose 0.3 g Potassium 11.0 mg

Vitamins Phosphorous 1.0 mg

Tiamin


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Extracted honey is graded into our classes based on the pre-dominance o avor and aroma rom a single oral source,the absence o deects, which reers to the degree o cleanli-ness, and clarity, which identifes suspended particles suchas air bubbles and pollen grains in the honey. Te our gradesare U.S. Grade A also known as Fancy, U.S. Grade B knownas Choice, U.S. Grade C also called Standard and U.S. GradeD called substandard. Tis grading system is important orcommercial operations that can use quality standards as amarketing tool.

Te color o the extracted honey is not graded but is usedas a describer o the honey. Te seven recognized colorclasses rom USDA guidelines are: water white, extra white,white, extra light amber, light amber, amber, and dark amber(Crane 1980).

Honey processing

Frames that are at least 75% capped on both sides o therame are harvested. Te excess propolis is scraped o therame and the rames sorted by honey color (i there are

many rames). Te cells are uncapped with a heated knie. Ascratcher is used to open any remaining uncapped cells. Tecappings can be cleaned and processed or beeswax.

Tere are dierent methods or extracting honey dependingon the number o rames that need to be extracted. Com-mercial operations have electric extractors that use centri-ugal orce to spin the honey out o the cells. Small-scaleelectric or hand-cranked extractors (also using centriugalorce) can be purchased rom bee supply companies andcan accommodate 220 rames. For one or two rames orhome use, the honey can simply be allowed to drip out o

the uncapped cells onto a collecting tray or the comb can becut into pieces and the honey strained out through a cloth.Aer straining, the extracted honey is allowed to settle ina holding container. Te honey should be allowed to settleovernight so that the air bubbles, wax pieces and any otherparticles oat to the top and can be removed beore bottling.

Comb honey

Comb honey is sold with the honey within the wax sealedhoney comb cells. Prior to the development o extractingmethods, most honey was sold as comb honey. Tere arethree types o comb honey; comb honey, chunk honey, and

cut comb honey. Comb honey is made by placing speciallyprepared rames ftted with small wood boxes usually 1013cm (45 in) or plastic rings approximately 10 cm (4 in) intoa hive with wireless wax oundation. Comb honey kits areavailable commercially. Tese rames can then be removedand packaged or sale. Comb honey is classifed as U.S. Fan-cy, U.S. No.1, U.S. No. 2, and unclassifed, based on the ap-pearance o the wax, attachment to the rame, uniormity othe honey, and degree o cleanliness. Chunk honey is madeby using a metal orm to cut honeycomb flled with honey

and capped with wax into smaller pieces usually less than a10 cm (4 in) square. Te pieces are then packaged in usuallyclear containers or sale. Cut comb honey consists o pieceso comb honey in a container as in chunk honey but withthe remaining space in the container flled with extractedliquid honey. Although cut comb and chunk honey have alimited market potential, they are not subject to the conventional grading o comb honey.

Creamed (or whipped) honey is made through a processthat controls the crystallization o the honey by addinga small quantity o crystallized honey (ratio 1:9) to liquidhoney. Te smaller the granules o crystallized honey usedto start the creamed honey, the smoother the fnal productTe mixture should be whipped to insure even distributiono the honey granules. Once evenly stirred, the mixture isle overnight and then packaged.

In order or honey (extracted, comb, creamed) to be soldcommercially, it must be processed in a certifed kitchen. Tecertifcation is done by the local Department o Health. Te

requirements or a honey processing acility include a sinkwith hot and cold running water (a three compartment sinkis preerred), a wash-up area, and a solid oor with drainage

Additional processing

Honey can be processed in dierent ways, which should beidentifed on the label. Raw honey reers to honey that hasbeen extracted rom the comb or sold in the comb with noadditional processing. It contains small particles includingwax pieces and pollen. Filtered honey has been processedthrough a screen to remove small particles such as wax andpollen. Te process can be done with or without heat. Heat

ing will hastened the straining process and can simultaneously pasteurize the honey. Unpasteurized honey is honeythat has not been exposed to heat. Exposure to heat changessome o the temperature sensitive sugars and many believecauses honey to lose some o its benefcial health and medicinal properties. Pasteurized honey is honey that is heattreated during processing. For processing purposes and orlarge commercial operations, pasteurization allows or theeasier handling o the honey. One common treatment is toheat the honey to 77C (170F) then the honey is cooled to54C (130F). Kosher honey must meet certain guidelinesand be certifed by a recognized rabbi. Kosher honey is min

imally processed and the equipment and production o thehoney must meet kosher dietary laws.

Beeswax

Beeswax is produced by workers that are about 1215 daysold and is used in the construction o honeycomb. Tesecells are used to store pollen and honey or ood and alsoused or the larval development o the workers, drones, andqueens. Worker bees have our pairs o wax glands on theunderside o their abdomen. Aer consuming large quanti


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ties o honey, these wax glands secrete wax scales that arethen pulled rom the abdomen and chewed by the mandi-bles o the workers mouth. Tis soened wax is then usedto build hexagonal shaped honeycomb cells. Research hasshown that workers consume about 8 units o honey or ev-ery one unit o wax produced. Tus, beekeepers should re-use beeswax rame oundation (aer extraction) or as longas possible to reduce the amount o beeswax that is neededto build honey comb cells on new rames.

Te main compounds ound in pure beeswax include hydro-carbons (14%), monoesters (35%), diesters (14%), and sev-eral types o acids (12%) (ulloch, 1980). Te main sourceo commercial beeswax is the cappings that are collected inthe uncapping stage o extracting honey. Te wax in cap-pings is mixed with honey, pollen, and propolis residues thatmust be separated out so that the wax can be stored in puri-fed orm. Tere are several dierent methods or cleaningthe wax cappings. Te solar extraction method uses a largeglass-covered wooden box with a metal bottom. Te glass-covered opening is directed towards the sun to melt the cap-

pings, which then drain into a collection tray. In the sackmethod, the wax cappings are placed into a porous clothsack. Te sack is submerged into a tank o hot water, whichis then stirred to melt the wax in the sack. When all the cap-pings have melted, the sack is removed and the water/waxmixture is cooled. Te wax layer will harden on the top othe water and can then be removed. Using a simple strainingmethod, the wax cappings are added directly to hot waterand the mixture strained or non-wax particles. Te solu-

tion is allowed to cool and the wax layer that hardens on thetop can then be removed.

Pollen

Pollen is produced in the male part o the plant. Tere aretwo basic types o pollen, airborne, which is carried by thewind, and non-airborne pollen that requires a carrier suchas honey bees to move it to the emale part o the plant. Pollen sticks to the hairy body o the oraging worker bee andthe bee carries it rom ower to ower, accomplishing pollination or the plant while collecting nectar and pollen. Teworker bee periodically combs o the excess pollen grainsrom its body with rows o hairs located on the inside othe third pair o legs. Te bee compresses the collected pollen grains in the pollen press, and stores them in the corbiculum or pollen basket, which is also located on the thirdpair o legs. When the basket is ull, the oraging worker beereturns to the hive. Once in the hive, the pollen pellets areremoved and placed into cells and stored or later use by thecolony as ood.

Since honey bees usually collect more pollen than is required or the colonys needs, beekeepers have developed aspecial device known as a pollen trap which can be placedat the entrance o the hive to collect the pollen pellets romreturning oraging bees. Te collected pollen is processedand then sold or human consumption. Te basic design othe pollen trap allows workers to enter into the hive througha mesh screen large enough to allow the bee to enter without the protruding pollen pellets, which are dislodged. Te

Lef: Uncapped and capped honeycomb cells made o beeswax lled with green honey (right) and ripe honey (lef). Right: Speciallymade rollers or pressing recycled wax into new oundation or rames. hualoa, Hawaii.


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dislodged pellets all into a collecting drawer that is emptieddaily by the beekeeper. Te trap should not be used or morethan a ew days since pollen is a dietary requirement o de-

veloping worker and drone larvae.

Bee pollen is considered a complete ood or people be-cause, depending on the plant source, it usually contains allessential nutritional elements required by humans. Tesenutritional elements include all the essential amino acids,minerals, and B vitamins. It also contains anti-oxidantssuch as avanoids, vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, and

lycopene. Depending on the plant source, pollen containsproteins (20%), carbohydrates (30%), starch (3%), and alarge percentage o mixed and undetermined components(Crane 1990). Presently, there is no appreciable commercialproduction o pollen within Hawaii.

Royal jelly

Royal jelly is secreted by worker bees that are 515 days old.It is ed to queen larvae or the entire larval eeding periodand to worker and drone larvae or the frst 3 days o de-

velopment. Royal jelly is produced in the hypopharyngeaglands in the head o the worker bee. Te chemical composition is water (66%), protein (12%), lipids (5%) and otherminerals including B vitamins (Lercker et al., 1992). Royal

jelly is used as a human dietary supplement and in cosmetics.

Te basic process to extract royal jelly rom the hive requiresspecialized cell rames designed to rear queens. Since queenlarvae require the most royal jelly, rames o queen cells areset into hives and aer 3 days, the royal jelly is scooped or

vacuumed out o the cells. o produce one pound o royajelly, an average o 1,000 3-day-old cells are needed. Teroyal jelly is then strained and kept rerigerated or usePresently within the state o Hawaii, there are no knownproducers o royal jelly.

Propolis

Propolis is made rom the sap and resins gathered by honeybees rom plants. Te sap and resins are gathered by theoraging worker bee in its mouth and placed directly into

Lef: Returning worker with light colored pollen pellets held within the pollen baskets located on the outer side o each hind leg. Topright: Tray rom a pollen trap with collected pollen pellets. e color o the pellets can help the beekeeper determine which plant species the bees are visiting. hualoa, Hawaii. Bottom right: Commercially available bee pollen in North Kona, Hawaii.


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the pollen basket or transport back to the hive. Generally,propolis is composed o waxes (30%), resins (55%), etherealoil (10%), and pollen (5%) (Krell, 1996).

Bees use propolis to seal cracks, reduce openings, andstrengthen the base o comb attachment. It is consideredto have antimicrobial properties against bacteria and ungi,which help the bees maintain their hive. Usually considereda nuisance material in the hive by beekeepers, the request

or propolis or value-added products such as tincturesand extracts has resulted in some beekeepers using specialscreens to collect propolis in the hive. Presently within thestate o Hawaii, there are no known commercial producerso propolis.

Brood and adults

Brood reers to the immature developmental stages o thehoney bee, eggs, larvae, and pupae. Te larvae, pupae, andadult bees can be harvested rom the hive or several pur-poses. Adult bees are collected to be sold as packaged bees.Te larval and pupal stages are sold or animal eed and or

human consumption. Tey are removed rom uncappedcells by shaking the rame or gently ushing the cells withwater. Te larvae and pupae can be consumed resh, dried,or rozen as a protein-rich ood.

Venom

Honey bee venom is produced by a pair o glands near thesting structure in worker bees. Workers that guard the en-trance to the hive have the most venom stored in the venomsac, which can be released when the barbed stinger pen-etrates an animal. Each stinger can inject 0.150.3 mg o

venom. In humans, the median lethal dose is 2.8 mg per kgbody weight, which would require hundreds o stings or anaverage-size adult. Most deaths occur rom allergic reac-tions resulting in heart ailure or suocation (Schumacheret al., 1989). Te large percentage o venom is water withthe remaining proportion composed o enzymes, proteins,peptides, amino acids, amines, sugars, phospholipids, and

volatile compounds (Dotimas and Hider, 1987). Tere aremany diseases or conditions that are believed to be treatablewith bee venom. Many o these reports, although not basedon scientifc evidence, suggest that the venom is eectiveor conditions and diseases such as arthritis, bursitis, ulcersligament injuries, inections, and asthma. Bee venom canbe harvested rom worker bees with the use o a special trapplaced into the hive. Te trap is equipped with wires thatgenerate an electrical current. Te shock causes the beesto sting a collecting plate or membrane and the collected

venom is then reeze-dried and stored in the rerigerator orozen until used. Venom is a very specialized product withonly one producer in the U.S. and no producers in HawaiiTe average price is $100200/g o dried venom.

Other markets

Pollination

Tere are several agents that pollinate plants, includingwind, water, birds, bats, and insects such as wasps, ants, iesand moths, but the most important are bees. Tere are several types o bees that pollinate, including leacutter bees(Magachilidae), stingless bees (Apidae), and the little honeybee (Apidae), but it is the honey bee that is most oen employed by people, especially or commercial purposes. Honey bees are considered good pollinators because when theycollect nectar and pollen or their own needs, they tend tocarry pollen rom plant to plant, completing the pollinationprocess. Tey also tend to collect pollen rom one plant species at a time, which increases their eectiveness as pollinators. Additionally, honey bees can be kept in movable hivesand provide other harvestable products as a by-product o

their pollination services. It is estimated that honey bees areresponsible or pollinating over $34 billion worth o cropsin the U.S., many o which are solely or primarily dependenton bee pollination. It is no wonder that Albert Einstein oncestated that i honey bees were to disappear, people wouldhave only 4 years to live. Some o the crops in Hawaii thatare the most dependent on honey bee pollination are lychee(Litchi chinensis), macadamia (Macadamia integriolia)rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum), and all members o theCucurbitaceae amily. Crops that would be less impacted bythe lack o honey bees are coee (Coea spp.), longan (Dimocarpus longan), avocado (Persea americana), and mango

(Mangiera indica) (Nagao, pers. com.).

Pollination services are becoming an important honey-related industry. Previously in Hawaii and the Pacifc, pollination services were accomplished largely through eral beesand to a much lesser extent, native pollinators.

Queen bees

A colony will naturally replace a queen when her productivity becomes diminished. Younger queens produce morePropolis on the inside o a hive cover at the University o Hawaii

at Hilo Farm, Panaewa, Hawaii.


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eggs than older queens, resulting in more bees and ultimately, greater honey production. Beekeepers replace existing queens (known as re-queening) about every 2 years aspart o their management practices to improve egg production. Beekeepers purchase queens rom queen producerswho raise queens o specifc races. Te price or a queen beeis currently about $20 (Bush, 2007). Producing queens canbe a lucrative business. In Hawaii, queen producers havecertain advantages over continental U.S. queen producersHawaiis climatic conditions allow or a steady, reliable delivery o queens. Coupled with breeding or the resistanceto certain bee related diseases, the avorable climate helpsHawaii to compete with queen producers elsewhere. Hawaialso has the advantage o ewer pests and diseases. On the island o Hawaii, there are several queen producers. Becauseo geographical isolation and avorable climatic conditionso many Pacifc islands, there is potential or queen rearing

ventures elsewhere in the Pacifc.

Packaged bees

In many places, bee hives are started rom purchased packaged bees. Live worker bees with or without a queen are soldin ventilated containers weighing usually 11.5 kg (2.23.3lb) (container and bees). In the Pacifc, New Zealand exports packaged bees on a regular basis to Canada, Koreaand Germany. Fiji supplied onga with some shipments opackaged bees in 2001. Although queen bees are a big business in Hawaii, there are no known local sources o packaged bees.

Agritourism

Agritourism or agricultural tourism is an increasingly popu

lar orm o vacationing. Visitors to operational arms learnabout how crops are grown, processed, and marketed, oten including tasting and sampling o products. Many armscharge a visitor ee, which adds to their revenue. Because othe desirability o vacation destinations to the Pacifc, agritourism or honey operations in these areas has potential orgrowth and development.

VALUE-ADDED PRODUCTS

Tere are many value-added or secondary products that canbe produced rom the primary bee products covered above

Honey

Honey can be used in the making o ermented, medicinaland cosmetic products, and as a sweetener in other productsTere are many recipes that include honey as an ingredientor salad dressings, desserts, main dishes, side dishes, andnon-ermented beverages such as lemonade and tea. Onepart honey can be substituted or 1.25 parts granulated sugar. For substitution o corn syrup, the conversion ratio is oneto one. Lower temperatures may be required or baking with

Honey bees are important pollinators or many crops, includingmacadamia nut (top) and lychee (bottom). Hlualoa, Hawaii.


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honey because o the quicker browning process, dependingon the quantity o honey used.

Honey can also be used in brewing beverages such as beerand mead. Mead is an alcoholic drink ermented rom di-luted honey. o make mead, honey is diluted with water,pasteurized, and then cultured yeast cells are added. Temixture is allowed to erment at a temperature optimal orthe yeast cells.

Honey is naturally resistant to microbial contamination. Itis thereore used or wound treatment by placing it directlyon a cut or burn. Honey is also mixed with alcohol or herb-al extracts or throat and mouth inections (Armon, 1980;Dumronglert, 1983). A simple common remedy or a sorethroat is to mix two teaspoons o honey and a squeeze olemon in a cup o tea.

Honey is also added in small quantities to cosmetics prod-ucts such as lotion, shampoo, soap, acial cream, and lipbalm or its moisturizing properties and aroma.

PollenBee pollen has many uses. It is used in medicine to help de-sensitize allergic patients with specially prepared pollen ex-tracts that are subcutaneously injected (Science Daily, 2007).Pollen is included in cosmetic products or its nourishingproperties or the skin, although its rejuvenating eectshave not been scientifcally proven. Pollen is also used as aood and dietary supplement or as an ingredient in ood rec-ipes (Krell, 1996). An easy drink recipe is a teaspoon each ohoney and pollen mixed into a cup o ruit juice.

Wax

Much o the beeswax produced in the U.S. is sold to beesupply companies to recycle into oundation sheets used inbee hive rames. It is also used or making candles that burnclean with a pleasant ragrance. Beeswax has certain uniqueproperties such as plasticity, ormation o stable emulsionsand water holding capacity that make it desirable in theormulation o many cosmetic products such as lipsticks

conditioners, and acial creams. A simple lip balm can bemade with equal parts o beeswax and coconut oil. Beeswaxis included in polishes, varnishes, wood preservatives, andtextile waterproofng. A simple wood polish can be madewith 450 g (1 lb) o beeswax and 473 ml (16 oz) each o turpentine and linseed oil. Beeswax is also used to coat pillsand as an ingredient in medicinal ointments (Adjare, 1984)

Propolis

Propolis is believed to improve circulation, help in tissueregeneration, improve digestion, and heal wounds (Krell1996). Propolis is used in cosmetics in the making o creams

acial masks, toothpaste, and shampoos. wo tablespoons(30 ml) o propolis in 473 ml (16 oz) o 100 proo alcoholmakes a simple wood fnish. In medicine, propolis is aningredient in oral and nasal sprays, and ointments (Krell1996). A simple tincture or cuts and scratches can be madewith equal parts o 100 proo alcohol and propolis heatedto 93C (200F) and stirred until most o the propolis hasmelted, then strained and bottled in a dark glass containerAdditionally, propolis is being studied or the treatment ocertain types o cancers, tumors, and HIV.

Lef: Special rame and cells used or queen rearing. Right: Queen bee in cage or shipping.


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Royal jelly

Royal jelly is believed to improve external skin problemsand improve general health including treating viral inec-tion, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels (Gimbel et al.,1962). It is used internally primarily as a dietary supplement,an additive to honey or juice products, medicinal products,and cosmetics. A acial cream can be made by combiningblended oil commonly used in cosmetics (80 g), coconut oil

(45 g), and beeswax (15 g). Heat the ingredients until meltedthen cool. Once cooled to room temperature, add the reshroyal jelly and store the cream in a dark glass container.

PRODUCT STORAGE

Honey

Storage containers or liquid or crystallized honey are usu-ally o glass or ood-approved plastic with an airtight lid.All products should be kept away rom heat. Storage rooms

should have a temperature o about 20C (68F) and a relative humidity o no more than 65% (Krell, 1996).

Pollen

Fresh pollen will lose its nutritional value within a ew daysunless it is rozen. However even when rozen, pollen willlose most o its nutritional value within a year. When driedto less than 10% (preerably 5%) moisture content and keptout o direct sunlight, pollen can be kept or several monthsTe same dried pollen, i rerigerated, can last a year andi rozen can last several years. Storing pollen in dark glasscontainers in cool places is recommended.

Propolis

Propolis is airly stable but should be stored in airtight darkcontainers at less than 10C (50F). Properly stored, propolis can retain its properties or over a year (Krell, 1996).

Royal jelly

Royal jelly is not a very stable substance and is subject to

rapid breakdown. Te minimum temperature or storageis 05C (3241F), but storage lie can be improved i thetemperature is -17C (1.4F) or lower. Freeze drying is recommended. Freeze-dried royal jelly and royal jelly-basedproducts can be stored at room temperature or severalmonths or years depending on the product (Krell, 1996).

Wax

Wax should be cleaned o impurities prior to storage, or itwill be subject to attack by wax moths. Wax should be storedin cool, dry places and never near materials that can impartodor. Wax will crystallize over time and become harder, but

melting can reverse crystallization.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF

HONEY BEE CULTIVATION

Honey bees are cultivated or two main reasons, harvestableproducts and pollination services. Te products that can beharvested rom a single bee hive can sustain a amilys needor honey and other products such as wax and pollen canbe used in secondary products. Beekeeping can be a viableindustry in the Pacifc because it has relatively low technological requirements, can be learned quickly, has a relatively

low start up cost, can be done by people o all ages (amiliesor communities), has minimal land requirements, is environmentally stable, and yields products have a long shel liewith little or no rerigeration (Driscoll, undated).

Agriculturally, honey bees are the primary pollinators omany crops. Without their pollination services, the ruit setand harvest o many o these crops would decrease (Benedek et al., 2006). Klein et al. (2003) showed a 1020% reduction in coee ruit set without bee pollination.

Top: UH Hilo arm manager demonstrates mead making to bee-keeping students. Panaewa, Hawaii. Bottom: Lip balm maderom local beeswax and other ingredients, North Kona, Hawaii.


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However, depending on the location o operation, honeybees can be a potential threat to humans and animals be-cause o potential allergic reactions to bee stings, whichcan cause severe symptoms such as dizziness, swelling, andshock. Honey bees will attack in deense o their hive. Inrural settings where the possibility o disturbing a hive orwalking too close would not occur very oen, cultivatingbees or products and pollination presents minimal risk. Inurban areas, encing and borders should be used to ensureunprovoked bee attacks are avoided. Te entrances to thehives should be placed where ight paths o the bees to androm the hives do not cross human activity. Another con-cern about raising honey bees in new areas is that it mayadversely aect native ecosystems in unknown ways.

HIVE DENSITY PER UNIT AREA

Recommendations or the number o hives per unit areaor adequate pollination vary with the plant species and thenumber o existing pollinators in the area. Te UH Cooper-ative Extension Service can provide pollination recommen-dations or some major crops. Examples o recommenda-tions or a ew crops are: seven to 14 hives per ha (2.5 acre)or maximum ruit set or mango, one to two hives per 4 ha(10 ac) or pumpkin or squash, and fve to eight hives per ha(2.5 ac) or avocado (McGregor, 1976).

Urban restrictions

Te State o Hawaii does not permit the keeping o apiarieson land that is zoned residential. On agricultural lands, api-aries are permitted but no closer than 305 m (1,000 ) romany major public street. Beekeepers need to check state and

local regulations or the keeping o bees in other urban areas.

COMMERCIAL TO HOME GARDEN SCALE

Beekeeping can be done on a small to large scale depend-ing on land availability, fnances, and market. Beekeepersare generally classifed as hobby beekeepers (hobbyists),sideline beekeepers (sideliners), and commercial beekeep-ers. Hobby beekeepers enjoy working with honey bees andcollect hive products or their own use. Sideline beekeepershave more than a ew hives and collect the hive products,primarily honey, or proft. However, their main source o

income is not based on beekeeping. Commercial beekeepersoperate their business with several hundred to thousands obee hives or proft and livelihood. Te initial investment ora commercial operation is substantial, including ensuringthat there are adequate oral sources or the bees. Since theaverage quantity o harvestable honey per hive in Hawaii isabout 45 kg (100 lb) per year, a amily o our can be sup-plied with a sustainable sugar source with our hives (basedon an average annual sugar consumption o 45 kg per per-son). For the home gardener, a 0.8 ha (2 ac) parcel with a

Top: A diverse 0.8-ha (2-ac) home garden with many dierentplants owering at dierent seasons can support two to ourhives. Middle: A small number o hives can produce enoughhoney or a ew amilies. Phoa, Hawaii. Bottom: Commercialoperation with many hives set up at a macadamia nut orchardWailuku, Hawaii.


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variety o plants such as avocados, tangerines, mango, cu-cumbers, eggplant, and pumpkin can support two to ourcolonies.

LABELING AND PACKAGING

According to the National Honey Board, honey labels mustinclude: 1) the word honey and the name o the oralsource (i there is a primary oral source), 2) the net weight,

and 3) the name o the manuacturer, packer or distributor.Additional inormation explaining the uses o the product,nutritional value, color, and USDA grade may increase sales.Packaging in small portions or gi baskets, hotels, and air-lines can also expand markets. Specialty containers, colors,or shapes may also increase consumer interest.

INVASIVENESS

Te honey bee has been imported to practically every placewhere it can be cultivated. Once introduced, managed beescan swarm and become established as eral colonies or aban-

doned hives can similarly move into nearby orested areas.Moritz et al. (2005) cautions that the honey bee establishesin native ecosystems, which is a potential threat to nativebee species. Honey bees could either acilitate pollinationo native plants or exclude more ecient native pollinators.Te potential threat to endemic/native bee species by thehoney bee is very important, especially to Pacifc islandsbecause o the limited land area. Where the honey bee hasnot yet been introduced in the Pacifc, an assessment o itsimpact on the native ecosystem should be considered priorto implementation o beekeeping activities.

MARKETS

Local markets

In Hawaii, honey is the primary product that is sold at armers markets and cra airs. Grocery stores also sell locallyproduced honey and even market honey rom contractedbeekeepers under the stores name.

Export markets

Tere is a large market or Hawaiian honeys that are associated with specifc plant sources and/or locations. One o themore successul apiaries, sells a white kiawe honey whichis harvested rom a localized area o Puak, Hawaii. Teselocally produced honey products are available to consumers worldwide via the Internet. Since honey does not requirererigeration or special handling, it is readily shipped orexport.

Branding possibilities

Honey has been a commodity that is branded by many pro

ducers who buy honey rom beekeepers and then processand bottle the honey to be sold under the producers nameIn Hawaii, honey is purchased by at least one grocery storeand sold under the stores brand name. Te University oHawaii is similarly branding a value-added bee product orsale under the universitys name. Similar branding potentialexists or honey and other products not only in Hawaii butelsewhere in the Pacifc.

Honey products can be produced and sold at local armers markets at retail, improving the prot margin or the beekeeper. HanaleiHawaii (lef) and Keauhou, Hawaii (right). Packaging and labeling can also impact customers perception o value and aect marketability.


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Potential or Internet sales

In Hawaii, there is already an established Internet marketor the sale o honey and queen bees. Honey rom other re-gions such as New Zealand, Samoa, and Fiji are also market-ed on the Internet. Te potential or other Pacifc islands toproduce honey and stable value-added products to be mar-keted on the Internet allows remote areas to be competitiveespecially in specialty markets.

Specialty markets

Organic

Organic honey is gaining in popularity and consumers arewilling to pay a higher price. In Hawaii, there are severalorganic honey producers who can compete against lowerpriced honey because o their organic certifcation. TeUSDA is currently working on a set o national standardsthat honey has to meet to be certifed and labeled organic.Meanwhile, certiying agencies accredited by the USDAhave their own standards or honey and can inspect and

certiy a beekeeping operation as meeting organic standards.Certifcation o organic honey covers production and pack-aging, including the oraging area within a 6.4 km (4 mi) ra-dius o the hives, hive management, extracting, processing,transporting, and packaging o the honey.

Plant source

Monooral honeys are produced rom one plant source.Tere are many plant species that are associated with tropi-cal regions and consumers search or these plant-specifchoneys. Examples include kiawe, macadamia, and hia le-hua honeys.

Hawaiian, other Pacifc island

Similar to plant source, there is a market appeal or honeysrom specifc locations such as Hawaii or even rom a re-gion within Hawaii (e.g., Kona, Volcano). When travelingto these places, locally produced and labeled honeys are de-sirable as souvenirs because when packaged well, it is stableunder most traveling conditions. Because o honeys liquidnature, honey products are currently subject to quantitylimitations in carry-on baggage or air travelers.

Medicinal

Certain honeys have been documented to have outstand-ing medicinal value. An example is New Zealands manukahoney (rom the manuka bush, also known as tea tree, Me-laleuca alterniolia). Manuka honey has been shown to beextremely high in methylglyoxal, which is associated withcancer treatments and wound healing (Waikato Honey Re-search Unit, undated). Although all honeys contain methyl-glyoxal, the amount in manuka honey can be as high as 100times higher compared with others. Te marketing o themedicinal value o honey can potentially increase sales.

Nutraceutical

A nutraceutical is a ood (or part o a ood) that providesmedical or health benefts, including the prevention and/ortreatment o a disease (Kalra, 2003). Te harvestable products rom a bee hive that would be considered nutraceutical are honey, pollen, and royal jelly. Some o the medicinaland/or health benefts associated with these products aredescribed in Value-added products above.

EXAMPLE SUCCESSESVolcano Island Honey Company

Volcano Island Honey Company owned by Richard Spiegel, produces single-oral source honeys at its acility inhualoa, Hawaii. Production is based on 150 colonies located in our yards around Hawaii Island.

Richard developed a passion or beekeeping while workingwith a beekeeper in the state o Washington who taught himthe cra in the 1970s. He now runs a vertically integrated

Mostly wax capped kiawe honey cells ready or extraction. ishoney is processed and sold as a white kiawe honey, specic to

the area. Puak, Hawaii.


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small business that builds its own equipment, manages beesor production, harvests and extracts honey, bottles, labels,and ships honey both to wholesale and retail customers.Te company also produces small quantities o bee pollenand wax. By carrying out all aspects o production, pro-cessing, and marketing rom bee to bottle, Richard meticu-lously controls product quality and consumer experience.All products come with a guarantee, I or any reason thisproduct doesnt meet your expectations, we will reund yourmoney or replace the product, no questions asked. Tiscommitment to customer satisaction has led to an interna-tional reputation or quality.

Richards honeys are careully processed without added heator fltration, which he believes yields a superior productboth in avor and healthul qualities. In addition to threesingle-oral source honeys (macadamia nut, hia lehua,and kiawe), Volcano Island Honey Company is continuallydeveloping new value-added products, such as new blendso honey with wildcraed lilikoi (passion ruit, Passiforasp.) and ginger (Zingiber ocinale). Another new product

is a specially handled and processed honey with a uniquelysilky texture. All o the products are certifed organic. Tecompany also oers educational opportunities includingarm tours and workshops.

Te quality o Richards products has not only drawn in cus-tomers rom around the world through word-o-mouth, butalso media attention. His company has been highlighted innumerous major magazine articles as well as fve televisionprograms. Tis ree coverage has meant that Volcano IslandHoney Company spends little on marketing.

Richards biggest challenge is not to be seduced by demandand money to get big, but to stay small and high quality.Every year, Richard receives about two dozen commercialaccount requests that he turns down. His second biggestchallenge is to become increasingly sustainable and sociallyand environmentally responsible. Richard considers these

values to be the oundation o his business and is constantlystriving toward them.

Volcano Winery

In addition to a range o grape-based wines, Volcano Win-ery in Volcano, Hawaii makes honey wines rom locally

produced macadamia nut honey. In contrast to mead, honeywine is produced without the use o heat. Aer ermentationis complete, the honey wines undergo a special proprietaryfltration to remove particulates and produce a clear prod-uct.

Te original owner o the winery chose honey wine in orderto dierentiate the product line and to use as many local rawmaterials as possible. Including the honey wines, VolcanoWinery produces six wines, fve o them award winning,including tropical ruit blends and other non-traditional

wines. In a urther diversifcation o their product line, theynow oer a honey wine with an inusion o black tea grownin the Volcano area. Tis product combines two importantlocal products to create a wine that is unique.

All production is done on site. A retail store at the winerysells the wines, along with other local products such as honey and tea. In Hawaii, their wines are widely distributed tostores that sell alcoholic beverages. Teir products are also

sold through their Internet site and through phone ordersVolcano Winery advertises in Hawaii in several print venues or visitors, such as some drive and hotel guides and rackcards. Tey have also received television coverage by networks such as CNN, Food Network, ravel Channel, andHoney Kingdom (Japan). Small tour buses are accommodated or winery tours and their visitor center.

Top: Richard Spiegel teaching in his on-arm classroom. Bot-tom: Richard introduces a group o college students to beekeeping in an afernoon tour.


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Hawaiian Queen Company

Michael Krones and Janice Horton, owner-operators o Ha-waiian Queen Company, manage 1,500 honey bee coloniesin Ka, Hawaii. Te colonies provide support or queen beerearing, honey, and pollinization services or large macada-mia nut growers and other agricultural crops. Teir opera-tions are USDA certifed organic.

Teir primary product is queen bees, which are exported toCanada and the U.S. mainland. o continually improve theirgenetic lines, Michael hires a honey bee breeder rom theU.S. mainland to produce new breeder queens through ar-tifcial insemination on a yearly program. Michael providesthe virgin queens rom his best colonies, and the bee breedersupplies semen rom his best stock. Te ospring o artif-cial insemination inherit characteristics rom both parents,incrementally improving desirable characteristics.

Michael has bee breeding or characteristics such as varroa mite resistance or several years and sees his breedingprogram as ongoing. His intensive selection and breedingprogram is geared toward producing queens that serve theneeds o his customers.

Te 1,500 colonies that support the queen bee operationproduce an abundance o honey, which is sold through largeretailers. In Hawaii, the warehouse store Costco sells their

honey due to its appeal as a certifed organic product that isproduced and packaged locally.

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS

Te Kentucky Department o Agriculture calculated that thestartup cost or hive materials and beekeeping equipment isapproximately $270 per hive. Hive materials needed includecovers, bottom boards, hive bodies, rames parts (includingeyelets and wire), oundation, paint, glue, and staple gun or

Top: Honey wines and honey on display at Volcano Winery. Bot-tom: A new value-added product, a honey wine inused with lo-cally grown black tea.

Top: Michael Krones inspects his breeder queen hives. BottomA breeder queen at Hawaiian Queen Company labelled with anidentication number.


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hammer and nails. Beekeeping equipment needed includesthe hive tool, bee brush, smoker, and rame grip. Bee suitswith gloves are also needed. Equipment needed i extract-ing honey include an uncapper or uncapp

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