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An innovation in the method of honey production has gone viral and is the focus of many debates among beekeepers around the world. meet the Flow Hive

Image: disclosure

The honey production system has not undergone many innovations since the invention and patenting of the Langstroth hive in 1852. Although the result is great, the process is a little laborious and different equipment is needed for the extraction and purification of honey. But Australian Stuart Anderson and his son Cedar Anderson present a new system that apparently makes the task much easier.

Traditional method of obtaining honey

The traditional Langstroth hive consists of a wooden box, with very specific measurements. In its interior there are pictures of nests or super trees, of well-established dimensions, where the bees produce a hive to deposit honey.

After the hives are built and filled with honey, the frames are removed for honey extraction, but everyone knows that no bee likes it when someone touches their hives, right? The most applied technique is to spray smoke into the hive, using a so-called fumigator, to slow down and try to calm the bees. At this stage of removing frames, many bees are stuck in the hives, so it is necessary to remove them with the help of a brush, and be very careful not to crush and kill many little bees at this stage.

With the frames removed from the hives, it is necessary to extract the honey contained in the combs. Initially, the so-called uncapping fork is used to remove the protective layer from the comb (the "caps" of each section in the comb where the honey is stored). After removing the protective layer, the frames with the combs are placed in a centrifuge, which will rotate them, causing the honey to be thrown against the centrifuge wall and drain to the bottom, where it passes through a sieve and is collected . The honey collected after centrifugation goes through a second sieve and is transferred to a decantation tank, where it will rest for about 72 hours so that the air bubbles formed during the process are eliminated. And so, decanted and ready-to-eat honey is obtained.

The innovation of Flow Hive

Cedar and his father, Stuart, in search of an easier, faster way and without the need for a lot of equipment to obtain honey, designed a system that allows the extraction of honey without the need for any step or machinery in the process used in the Langstroth's hive. it is about the Flow Hive. According to its creators, after being designed, the method was tested over three years in different parts of the world, by several beekeepers. Father and son then launched an internet campaign, through the Indiegogo website, in which, in 10 minutes, they reached the goal of raising US$ 70 thousand, raising US$ 2.1 million on the first day of the campaign - that's right. led the campaign to become Indiegogo's one-day fundraising champion. In all, more than $12 million was raised.

The system Flow Hive promises to obtain pure and ready-to-eat honey without the need for any equipment, and without disturbing the bees. Watch the video (in English) produced for the fundraising campaign to carry out the project.

The frames have a plastic structure that simulates combs in which bees are able to deposit honey. This structure has the ability to change shape, thus creating openings and paths for the honey to be extracted by gravity to the bottom of the frame, where it will be collected by simple tubes. Apparently, the process is not as disturbing for bees as the traditional method, as when the structure is changed for honey extraction, it does not break down or disturb the protective layer and it is not necessary to remove the frame to obtain the honey.

The innovation in this project is the quick and less invasive extraction of honey stored by the bees, but the remaining care with the hive remains the same: pest problems, need to periodically open to check and keep the bees healthy, etc.

The complete apiary (like the one in the initial photo) can be purchased for $699, which includes all the structure shown in the video, except for the honey and bees. There is also the option of buying just the basic box with the frames (starting at $339) or the frames (three frames for $259).

The controversy: pros and cons

Once it went viral, the Flow Hive became the target of many positive and negative reviews from several beekeepers, many defending the traditional method of obtaining honey.

Beekeepers who are against this new system argue that the Flow Hive it turns bees into just a machine for producing honey, excluding the experience and connection that the beekeeper would have with the bee, because, according to those who defend this opinion, the stage of honey extraction is an essential experience. Others say that bees do not have as much affinity with plastic, and this may mean that there is no income equal to or superior to the traditional one, in which the bees that build and structure the comb. Hives are the homes of bees, where they store nectar to feed and where they protect their larvae to become bees. The plastic structuring does not contain the properties of a comb built by bees, such as temperature, vibration, humidity, among other properties, and may have a negative impact on bees, but so far no studies have been carried out on these possible impacts.

Another argument against is about the price of Flow Hive is the price for obtaining a complete kit (US$ 699), considered extremely high considering the money that the initiative raised from donations and the price for obtaining the Langstroth hive kit, which would be even less out of the half of this price, without considering the equipment needed to extract the honey.

In defense of the new system, the creators and supporters of Flow Hive emphasize that the system only facilitates and speeds up the process for obtaining honey, but the care and maintenance of the hive must be maintained and very well carried out, thus requiring knowledge and experience to be able to produce honey. This system is not aimed at people who are unfamiliar with the subject to produce honey as if it were a very easy and quick activity, but rather encourage people to acquire knowledge in the area and become beekeepers through a system that does not disturb bees too much. Regarding the affinity for plastic, there is a consensus among beekeepers that bees do not have a high familiarity with the material, but the system can really work and have a good yield, but it varies from region to region - the different types of climate and bees can greatly interfere with honey production and the system. For example: in very cold climates, honey can crystallize and not run out to be extracted, and it is even possible for bees to freeze to death at the top of the frames.

According to the creators, the Flow Hive, in addition to contributing to the reduction of hive disturbance, can influence many people around the world to be interested in beekeeping and become beekeepers, thus helping to reverse one of nature's greatest problems today: the decrease in the surrounding bee population of the world. Bees may just look like little animals, but they are one of the most important for crops, for many different types of plants and for the planet. The decrease in the number of bees on the planet is impacting not only nature itself, but human food production and even the economy.

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