Could honey bee brood (larvae and pupae) graduate from a niche delicacy to a more widely eaten food of the future?
A new study by researchers from the University of Copenhagen, just published in the Journal of Apicultural Research, suggests that honey bee brood could indeed represent what they term a "realistic addition to a more sustainable food industry" in a world that, by 2050, could be home to more than 9 billion people.
"The near omnipresence of honey bees around the world and [their] long-documented relationship with man could potentially accelerate the acceptance of insects as a foodstuff," the scientists write. They note that places as far-flung as Mexico, Thailand, Australia, and China already consume honey bee brood as a delicacy, the substance prized for its nutritional value – they're rich in protein – and sweet taste.
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Honey bees, though, are key pollinators, vital to the global food supply. In recent times, they have come under pressure from conditions such as colony collapse disorder and other threats that include insecticides and the parasitic Varroa mite. Attacks by the latter can take out an entire hive if the infestation is large enough.
Does it make sense to view such a key and troubled insect as a direct food supplier?
The researchers say beekeepers today are already accustomed to removing drone brood from their hives, as a hedge against Varroa mite infestations. (The mites prefer honey bee drones to workers and reproduce more successfully with them.)
"This practice makes honey bee drone brood a by-product, producing an abundant source of farmed insects with untapped potential," the scientists write.
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Dr. Lena Bayer-Wilfert, an evolutionary geneticist and honey bee expert from the University of Exeter, who was not involved in the study, sounded a note of caution about the road ahead.
"Clearly, this is at a very experimental stage yet and likely to be a niche market for the foreseeable future. There are other edible insects that are much closer to market," Bayer-Wilfert told Seeker. "Honey bees cannot be kept inside, so if drone brood becomes a commodity, it might result in more honey bee hives being kept and make beekeeping more profitable. So, at first glance: A good thing for pollination services."
"However," she added, "honey bees can be in competition with wild pollinators, so massively increasing the number of honey bee hives that need to forage for nectar and pollen in such a hypothetical scenario could have negative consequences for the biodiversity and abundance of wild pollinators. These wild pollinators, in turn, are crucial for food security and maintaining biodiversity of flowering plants. If honey bee brood ever were to become a large-scale food source, clearly the environmental costs would need to be evaluated first."
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The University of Copenhagen scientists acknowledge there are indeed obstacles to surmount before honey bee brood harvesting for food could become prevalent. One involves the harvesting itself – it's a tricky and delicate process to remove intact brood from a hive The researchers hope their paper will spur more research into the potential food source.
"Honey bees and their products are appreciated throughout the world," said the study's lead author Annette Bruun Jensen in a statement. "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."