Standard methods for Apis mellifera brood as human food

Figures & data

Table 1. Types of syrup feeders to be used in feeding experiments for optimal brood production.

Type of feeder	Place	Size	Advantages	Disadvantages
Miller	Internal – on the top of the frames	3–5 l	Easy to fill. Serve as thermic isolation between the nest and the roof. Does not disturb the nest when filling	Require tight closure against robbers. The sugar solution cools too fast in winter
Frame	Internal – in place of 2 frames	2 l	Easy to fill. Keeping the temperature of the syrup during time	Disturbs the nest
Inverted container	Outside the hive – on the flying board	1 l	Easy to work with	High rates of robbing
Baggie feeder	Internal on the top of the frames, inside an empty super	Following the size to the bag	Great quantities of syrupx	The empty super enlarges the internal sizes of the hive that the bees have to warm

Figure 1. A three section drone brood 12 × 10 frame (306 × 262 cm). The right section is one week, the middle section is two weeks and the left section is three weeks old and ready to be harvested.

Figure 2. Time and duration of sealed worker brood from capping to emergence including morphological categories.

Source: Human et al. (2013).

Table 2. HPLC method for determination of tocopherols, b-carotene, and all-trans-retinol: step gradient and detector program (Salo-Väänänen et al., 2000).

Time, min	n-hexane %	diisopropyl ether, %	Diisopropyl ether-n-hexane (1:9)%	Flow (ml/min)	UV (nm)	Fluorescence (ex/em)
0	97	0	3	1.5	450	292/325
4.0	97	0	3	1.5	325	292/325
4.1	20	0	80	1.5	325	292/325
24.0	20	0	80	1.5	325	292/325
24.1	70	30	0	1.5	325	292/325
45.0	70	30	0	1.5	325	292/325
45.1	97	0	3	3.0	325	292/325

Figure 3. The electronic tongue (Insent SA402B, Japan) analyzing taste profiles of different honey bee pupae samples.

Figure 4. Texture properties on raw or processed food products including bee brood e.g., bread, protein bars, cakes. The texture analyzer measures different physical characters such as: firmness, hardness, crunchiness, crispiness, etc.

Figure 5. Kheang Nor Mai Preaw Kai Peung: soup from north-east Thailand with sour fermented bamboo shoots and weaver ant eggs, here also made with (less traditional) honey bee larvae, made by Ranee Udtumthisarn in Copenhagen.

Figure 6. Kai Jiew Mod Dang: Chicken eggs scrambled with garlic, chilli, shallots, scallions, fish sauce, and weaver ant eggs, here also made with (less traditional) honey bee larvae, made by Ranee Udtumthisarn in Copenhagen.

Figure 7. “Peas ‘n’ bees”, a dish developed at the Nordic Food Lab: fresh pea soup, bee larvae (some poached, some fried), blanched peas, lovage and fermented bee pollen (“bee bread”).

Figure 8. Honey bee larvae granola, developed at the Nordic Food Lab: oats, seeds of sunflower, pumpkin and flax, coated in a blended mixture of bee larvae and honey and baked until golden brown, with whole dried larvae and pupae added at the end for texture and flavor.

Figure 9. Honey bee larvae ceviche, a dish developed at the Nordic Food Lab: bee larvae cured in rhubarb vinegar, garnished with purple oxalis leaves and stems, freeze-dried raspberries, and lemon verbena.

Human, H., Brodschneider, R., Dietemann, V., Dively, G., Ellis, J. D., Forsgren, E., ... Zheng, H.-Q. (2013). Miscellaneous standard methods for Apis mellifera research. In V. Dietemann, J. D. Ellis, & P. Neumann (Eds.), The COLOSS BEEBOOK, Volume I: standard methods for Apis mellifera research. Journal of Apicultural Research, 52(4). doi:10.3896/IBRA.1.52.4.10

 Google Scholar

Salo-Väänänen, P. S., Ollilainen, V., Mattila, P., Lehikoinen, K., Salmela-Mölsä, E., & Piironen, V. (2000). Simultaneous HPLC analysis of fat-soluble vitamins in selected animal products after small-scale extraction. Food Chemistry, 71, 535–543.10.1016/S0308-8146(00)00155-2

 Web of Science ®Google Scholar