BIDHAN CHANDRA KRISHI VISWAVIDYALAYA

ELP-455,
COMMERCIAL BEE
KEEPING
COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION OF
BEE VENOM AND IT’S USES.

PRAGATI RANI GHOSH

ROLL NO.- AG107
B.SC (AG) HONS. ,
8TH SEMESTER
Bee and their services.
Bees and their pollination services contribute to maintaining biological balance in nature
and enable various animal and plant species, including humans, to thrive. They also
provide bee products that are an entirely natural food source. People have used them
since time immemorial, and they are a particularly suitable source of food in today's
increasingly faster pace of life.

Today, beekeeping is an important, sustainable, integral agricultural activity and

opportunity for the farmers to adopt as an enterprise. It provides nutritional, economic,
and ecological security and balance. The knowledge of agro-climatic conditions, the
diversified flora, changing agri / horticultural pattern of the crop, the types of bees, the
management practices etc. play a pivotal role in transforming the beekeeping industry.

Beekeeping is ecological friendly, requires few resources to start up production, can be

quickly taken up again after a crisis period and the necessary skills are easily transmitted
from one generation to the other making it a sustainable livelihood strategy.

BEE PRODUCTS:

Bees offer numerous benefits for humans. The following products obtained by bees
used by humans are:

1. HONEY

2.BEE WAX

3. PROPOLIS

4. BEE BREAD

5. BEE VENOM

6. BEE BROOD

7. ROYAL JELLY

8. BEE POLLEN

BEE VENOM:
Honeybee venom is produced by two glands associated with the sting apparatus of
worker bees. Its production increases during the first two weeks of the adult worker's
life and reaches a maximum (0.15-0.3mg) when the worker bee becomes involved in
hive defence and foraging. It diminishes as the bee gets older. The queen bee's
production of venom is highest on emergence, probably because it must be prepared
for immediate battles with other queen. The spring bees that are raised with a lot of
pollen have the most and most effective venom.

 Bee venom dissolves in water but not in oil.

Alcohol is harmful to bee venom.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF BEE VENOM:

Honeybee venom is a clear, odorless, watery liquid. When coming

into contact with mucous membranes or eyes, it causes
considerable burning and irritation. Dried venom takes on a light yellow colour and
some commercial preparations are brown, thought to be due to oxidation of some of
the venom proteins. Venom contains a number of very volatile compounds which are
easily lost during collection.

COMPOSITION OF BEE VENOM:

The composition of bee venom is well studied, it is a complex mixture of of proteins,
peptides and low molecular components. The main components are proteins and
peptides. There is a difference between fresh and dried bee venom, given by the volatile
components, but otherwise, the overall biological activity is similar. 88% of the venom is
water, rest 12% include the proteins and enzymes etc. There are 5 enzymes in BV:
phospholipase A2,phospholipase B, hyaluronidase, phosphatase, α-glucisidase. The
main polypeptides are: melittin, apamine, MCD peptide, secapide, pamine, minimine,
adolapine, procamine A, B, Protease inhibitor, tertiapide, cardiopep, melittin F.

(The composition of the venom varies somewhat between the individual colonies or races
of one bee species, and it varies considerably between various species of honey bees. The
effectiveness of Apis cerana venom is twice as high as that of Apis mellifera, and the
venom of Apis dorsata is about the same strength as that of Apis mellifera. The venom of
Apis florea is less potent.)
BENEFITS OF BEE VENOM:

 BEE VENOM IN THERAPY:

People said “the bee is a disposable syringe with a unique drug”. This materialistic way
of considering honey bees as mere instruments to our benefits, it’s crude and
inhumane, yet true. Honey bees seem to have come to this world to offer us food and
medicine, even gave their lives for this. The apitherapy uses bee venom in small doses
and it was proved to be beneficial in treating a large number of diseases:

-Arthritis

–Diseases of the central and peripheral nervous system (multiple sclerosis, dementia,

post stroke paralysis, polyneuritis, ganglion nerve inflammation, cerebellar ataxy,
suringomyelia- pain of extremities, headache; inflammation of facial nerve; myopathy;
trigeminal neuralgia; postrtraumatic inflammation of plexus
nerve; Parkinson; Alzheimer; lower back pain.

–Heart and blood system: hypertension; arteriosclerosis; endarteritis; angina pectoris;

arrthythmia

–Skin diseases: eczema, dermatitis, psoriasis; furunculosis; cicatrices; baldness

–other diseases: ophthalmology; gastroenterology: colitis, ulcers; pulmonology: asthma,

bronchitis; pharingytis, tonsillitis, ear nerve neuritis; endocrinology; urology etc.

COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION OF BEE VENOM:

Early collection methods required surgical removal of the venom gland by squeezing
each individual bee until a droplet could be collected from the tip of the sting. Since the
early 1960's, extraction by the electro-shock method has been continuously improved
and is now standard procedure. Different extraction or collection methods result in
different compositions of the final products. Venom collected under water to avoid
evaporation of very volatile compounds seems to yield the most potent venom. Venom
collected from surgically removed venom sacs showed different protein contents from
that collected with the electroshock method. Sometimes a cooling system is used with
the standard electro-shock collecting apparatus in order to preserve more of the volatile
compounds.

IN the electroshock method, the various trap designs stimulate bees by applying a mild
electric shock through wires above the collecting tray. The trays are placed either
between the bottom board and brood chamber at the hive entrance or in a special box
between supers and the hive cover, When shocked, bees sting the surface on which
they are walking. After a number of bees have released their venom, the colony as a
whole attacks the collector plate so that thousands of bees empty their venom sacs
onto it. In some traps, this may be a glass plate or a thin (0.13 mm thick) plastic
membrane, nylon taffeta or silicon rubber under which a collecting plate (preferably
made of glass) or absorbent tissue receives the venom. Venom dries rapidly on glass
plates and can be scraped off with a razor blade or knife. Absorbent tissue is washed in
distilled water to extract the venom, which then should be freeze-dried. Collection on
glass is generally easier and produces a product which is easier to store, ship and
process. During handling of dry bee venom, protective gloves, glasses and dust masks
should be worn to avoid any contact with, or inhalation of the highly concentrated
venom.

TO BE NOTED:
 The standard electro-shock method cannot be recommended for venom collection
from Africanized honeybees or the more defensive races in other parts of the
world.
 During and after use of the collector the hive and other colonies in the area can
become very agitated. It is therefore best to do this in an isolated area. Venom
from one hive can only be harvested a few times per year, otherwise it would
weaken the colony too much. Harvesting bee venom can also reduce the
production of honey.
 A strong colony can supply approximately one gram of bee venom each time.

VENOM COLLECTOR
STORAGE:

Even dried bee venom should be stored refrigerated or preferably frozen and it should
always be kept in dark bottles in the dark. Dried bee venom can be kept frozen for
several months, but should not be kept refrigerated for more than a few weeks. Liquid
venom and diluted venom can be stored for similar periods if maintained in well sealed,
dark glass containers.

BEE PRODUCTS:
Bee venom may be sold as whole bee extract, pure liquid venom or an injectable
solution, but in either form the market is extremely limited. Most venom is sold in a dry
crystalline form. There are creams available which include bee venom which are used
for external application on arthritic joints.

MARKET OUTLOOK:
Bee venom is a highly specialized product with only very few buyers. The market volume
is relatively small too, although there are no comprehensive surveys. The main venom
producer is USA but there is a large producer in Brazil and more or less significant
amounts are produced in many other countries. Prepared for injections or sold in
smaller quantities, prices can be much higher. However, the beekeeper often does not
get this price. The prevailing prices in European and Asian markets are generally slightly
lower. Local manufacturing of the pure venom however, is relatively easy and within the
means of many beekeepers; no expensive or high technology processing is required
except refrigeration, but its economic feasibility depends on access to the few
specialized buyers. In contrast, the venom in less controlled dosages is available almost
everywhere, from a beekeeper or one's own hives, free or at very low cost. Often, the
only price is the life of the bee.

Cost of bee venom production:

Price of a bee venom collector apparatus= 40,000/-

In India, where there is a good market, 1g of dried bee venom vial is priced at rupees
10000-12000/- .

Expenses for bee venom production is however one time, so with the correct practices
and buyers, it can be emerge as very profitable enterprise.

CONCLUSION:
Beekeeping not only produces a nutritious and high-value food product which generates
income, but it also creates employment possibilities along the honey value chain (input
provision, production, processing, and marketing). Beekeeping does not consume large
amounts of land – a backyard is sufficient – so it releases people from land-demanding
activities and reduces pressure on land. As beekeeping requires relatively lower levels of
investment and is a non-physically demanding work, it is also favorable for women and
landless youth. And also there is a huge scope and potential for diversification in bee
products which can be a real game changer in the agri-allied sector.