🐞 Bee Products

Bee products are central to apiculture economics and pollinator-based farming systems. This lesson explains their composition, processing behavior, and field-level quality considerations for practical use.

Bee Products Covered

1. Honey
2. Bees Wax
3. Royal Jelly
4. Bee Venom
5. Propolis
6. Pollen

Honey

• A sweet, viscous fluid - Produced by honey bees

• Collected as nectar from nectaries at base of flower

• Also collected from extra floral nectaries (nectar secreted by parts other than

flowers)

• Collected also from fruit juice, cane juice

Collection and ripening of honey

• Bee draws nectar by its tongue (proboscis)

• Regurgitated by field bees

• Collected by hive bees - Deposited in cells in comb

• Nectar contains 20-40% sucrose

• Invertase converts sucrose into dextrose (glucose) and levulose (fructose)

• Invertase is present in nectar itself and in saliva of honey

• Ripening of honey is by action of enzyme and by evaporation of water by

fanning of wings

Per cent (Approx.)

Composition of fully ripened honey

Lrvulose 41.0

Dextrose 35.0

Sucrose 1.9

Dextrins 1.5

Minerals 2.0

Water 17.0

Undetermined (Enzymes, Vitamins, Pigments, etc.) 1.6

Pigments

Carotene, Chlorophyll, Xanthophyll

Minerals include

Potassium, Calcium, Phosphorus, Sodium, Magnesium, Manganese, Copper, Sulphur, Silica, Iron.

Vitamins

Vit B1 (Thiamine), B2 (Riboflavin), Nicolinic acid, Vit.K, Folic acid, Ascorbic acid, Pantothenic acid.

Physical properties of honey

1. Honey is hygroscopic. If exposed to air it absorbs moisture
2. Honey is a viscous fluid. Heating of honey reduces viscosity
3. Specific gravity of pure honey is 1.35 - 1.44 gms/cc
4. Refractive index of honey - Helps to find moisture content measured using

refractometer

Purity test for honey

1. Measure specific gravity of honey using hydrometer
2. If the specific gravity is between 1.25-1.44 it is pure honey

Aroma and flavour of honey

1. Acquired from the nectar of the flower
2. Lost if heated or exposed to air for long time

Colour of honey

1. Depends on the nectar of flower (plant species)
2. Darker honey has stronger flower
3. Lighter honey has more pleasant smell

Fermentation of honey

• Honey containing high moisture can ferment

• Sugar tolerant yeast present in honey cause fermentation

• Fermentation more at 11-21 [o] C

• Fermentation lends to formation of alcohol and carbondioxide

• Alcohol later converted into acetic acid

• Fermented honey sour in taste due to acidity

• Heating honey to 64 [o] C for 30 min destroys yeast and prevents fermentation

Crystallization or granulation of honey

• This is a natural property of honey (particularly at low temperature)

• Dextrose present in honey granulate and suffer down

• Levulose and water remain at top - More prone to fermentation

• High ratio of Levulose/Dextose (L/D) - Less granulation

• High ratio of Dextrose/Water (D/W) - More granulation

Summary Cheat Sheet

• Honey, beeswax, royal jelly, pollen, propolis, and bee venom are the major economic products obtained from bee colonies.

• Each bee product has a distinct biological origin, composition, and practical use in food, medicine, cosmetics, or industry.

• Knowing bee products is important because beekeeping income depends on more than honey alone.

• Review core concepts, definitions, and field-level application points from this lesson.

• Prioritize economic threshold-based decisions and integrated management logic where relevant.