What is it all about?

This investment is developing and implementing innovative probiotics as low-cost and chemical-free treatments for honey bee diseases.

Probiotic treatments have recently been developed to increase the resistance of the European honey bee to specific viral and bacterial diseases. However, several diseases infect hives, and it is challenging to anticipate which disease is responsible for poor hive performance. It is therefore vital to develop methods that are efficient at improving honey bee resistance to a wide spectrum of diseases.

The research team will:

1. Culture and store probiotic strains and diseases of honey bees in laboratory conditions
2. Test for the effects of probiotics against a range of infections in laboratory conditions
3. Test for the effects of probiotics on flower visitation by honey bees in the field.

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Visit the Honey Bee Probiotics website established by the project here to find key project updates and information.