A master beekeeper in Alberta is putting an insulated hive to the test he says could help a struggling Canadian industry.
Sheldon Hill, who works as an educator three hours southeast of Calgary, says an Australian-made product could help change the beekeeping game.
“The sensor data is telling me that the bees are easily able to regulate the area inside their hive much more efficiently,” Hill told CBC News.
He has found that the insulated hive results in a stronger buildup and increased honey production — but it could be a hard sell for an industry that often avoids such big changes.
Hill was a commercial apiarist for three decades in Porcupine Plain, Sask., working for a family of generational beekeepers.
He recently left large-scale beekeeping behind to take on a new role as an educator and researcher with the Prairie Rose School Division in southeast Alberta.
Through a partnership with Medicine Hat College’s Centre for Innovation, Hill is running a year-long test comparing a HiveIQ setup next to a traditional wooden hive at a Neubauer Farms property about five minutes outside Medicine Hat.
His pilot project started in May during the spring buildup and continued into the all-important summer honey producing period.
While Hill cautioned that large-scale research will still be required, he said the hope is that beekeepers, often wary of silver bullets, will be open to the innovative potential of insulated hives.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/insulated-beehives-canada-9.6960138