ItB次元官网网址檚 a high-tech project to help beekeepers monitor their hives better and improve honey yields.

The Worker Bee Honey Company of Chilliwack has partnered with University of the Fraser Valley to develop an automated honey extraction information system.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e been working on this project for three years,B次元官网网址� said Peter Awram, owner of Worker Bee Honey Co., said about the machines that will streamline the extraction.

The industry has been struggling for decades, Awram noted, and the technology has been extremely slow to evolve.

B次元官网网址淏eekeeping has not changed much in a century,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭hat got me thinking of big changes that could help.B次元官网网址�

The honey extraction information system is one of 28 projects to be awarded funding from the (CAP). The project will receive $170,320 in CAP funding to create the automated harvest system.

B次元官网网址淭he funding is well-appreciated,B次元官网网址� Awram said, as it directly addresses one of the beekeeperB次元官网网址檚 central challenges: B次元官网网址淲e canB次元官网网址檛 find workers. No one wants these jobs.B次元官网网址�

Typically the honey operation that he runs needs seven workers during harvest time, which occurs over seven very specific weeks in June, as well as in July and August.

B次元官网网址淭he faster you pull the honey off, the more efficient your use of capital. That was the impetus for the project. You need a lot of labour for a short period of time.B次元官网网址�

Lin Long, associate professor of engineering and physics at UFV, is designing the automated system.

The funding is going into producing a prototype with the help of UFV engineering students who will get field experience. These machines will ultimately replace the work of one person and they are under construction in Chilliwack right now.

B次元官网网址淏y reducing costs to beekeepers, this will help to ensure a sustainable bee/honey sector, which is essential for the long-term success of B.C. and Canadian agriculture,B次元官网网址� said Long.

The proposed system will increase efficiency, cut processing time and address the shortage of skilled labour in the honey industry by automating harvesting through technology.

READ MORE:

B次元官网网址淭he system will be able to monitor each hiveB次元官网网址檚 honey yield and provide insight into superior breeding stock of male and queen bees, hive diseases and the impact of environmental variables, such as climate and weather on each hive,B次元官网网址� according to the release from CAP.

The results of this project will help beekeepers better care for their hives and improve honey yield.

B次元官网网址淭ime and again, producers prove their ingenuity in finding solutions to the challenges they face,B次元官网网址� said Marie-Claude Bibeau, federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food said in the news release. B次元官网网址淥ur government is very excited to collaborate with industry and the Province of B.C. on the introduction of these innovations, which help our British Columbian agriculture industry grow in sustainable ways.B次元官网网址�

Lana Popham, B.C.B次元官网网址檚 Minister of Agriculture agreed with the ingenuity comment. She had been present last year in Chilliwack when the Worker Bee Honey Co. opened up its specialized lab to detect fraudulent honey.

B次元官网网址淭he innovative projects coming out of B.C. are impressive,B次元官网网址� Minister Popham added.

READ MORE:

Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email:
jfeinberg@theprogress.com

Like us on and follow us on .