Science

Honey bee brood – a good source of food?

The harvesting of bee larvae could help feed the hungry
dinhngochung/Depositphotos
The harvesting of bee larvae could help feed the hungry
dinhngochung/Depositphotos

What do cultures in places such as Mexico, Australia and Thailand have in common? They all consider "bee brood" to be a delicacy. Consisting of bee larvae and pupae, it reportedly has a "nutty flavor with a crunchy texture when eaten cooked or dried," plus it rivals beef in protein quantity and quality. With that in mind, a University of Copenhagen study suggests that the harvesting of bee brood be pursued on a larger scale in order to address world hunger.

The researchers are specifically looking at the brood of honey bee drones, which are reared at a specific time of year. Beekeepers already remove large quantities of drone brood from commercial hives, in order to minimize the chances of the colony being infested by the Varroa mites that are attracted to it. The keepers do so in a sustainable manner, however, leaving enough brood to keep the colony going.

According to the scientists, there are several advantages to raising bee brood as a food source – besides the nutty taste, that is. First of all, it utilizes something that is being harvested anyway. The hives also require little space, are relatively inexpensive to set up, plus they produce honey and support the pollination of crops.

Removing the delicate brood without damaging it could prove challenging, however, with several methods currently being pursued. Storing of the harvest is also an issue, although the brood can reportedly be frozen for up to 10 months without adverse effect.

"Honey bees and their products are appreciated throughout the world," says lead scientist Prof. Annette Bruun Jensen. "Honey bee brood and in particular drone brood, a by-product of sustainable Varroa mite control, can therefore pave the way for the acceptance of insects as a food in the western world."

A paper on the research was recently published in the Journal of Apicultural Research.

Source: Taylor & Francis

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Flipboard
  • LinkedIn
5 comments
ColinWeeks
I do not profess to be an expert in this area but as an avid reader of many topics I am concerned about the many reports from mainly northern hemisphere scientific communities that the bee population is spiralling downwards at a greater rate than they feel comfortable with. If this proves to be true then people interfering with the brood population need to be extremely cautious. Rather than seeing this as an alternative to feed the ever increasing numbers of people on our planet look at the positive side of increasing the brood capacities so that the bee population, which is needed far more than our own species, will help to increase plant life for the benefit of not only us but the myriad number of other groups of life that rely on the humble bee doing what it has done since it evolved into its present state. I am open to argument on this personal view and will appreciate logical and reasoned reponses
zr2s10
First off: NO way am I eating bee maggots. Caviar is a delicacy too, and that's disgusting (yes, I've tried it). And with the declining bee populations, this is the last thing we need to be doing! How about collecting grown bees to aid other colonies that are dwindling? I don't know if that's possible, but seems like a better option for them.
Daniel Gregory
Honey Bees are endangered. Let's eat their babies.
ljaques
God help us if the feeble minded take hold of this idea ("Oh, I know where some hives are!") and kill all the bee colonies in search for their delicacies. <thud> Well, I guess that's one way to cause an 80% reduction in the world population... If the main instigators of pollenation (bees) diminish any more, or are all killed, there won't be enough food crops for humans to survive. As they died, most plant life would also fail to replicate in sufficient numbers to keep other insects and animals alive. What a dangerous idea, Prof. Jensen! Life is precarious enough.
MattII
People, they're talking about eating drones, (which get removed anyway), not workers.