How much honey does a beehive produce?

A healthy swarm can produce up to 50kg of honey per year

Each hive medially produces 20 to 50 kg of honey in one year. The exact quantity varies according to the type of honey, the number of bees, the blooms present in the area but also the strength of a swarm.

bees are social animals. Their coordination and collaboration work is able to guarantee food for all the components of the hive . The bees are therefore able to produce enough honey to feed tens of thousands of individuals.

During the harvesting phase, the beekeeper takes only a small part of the honey obtained, the rest of the substance is left available to the bees to ensure they survive without problems. Let's find out more about honey production by bees, how this substance is obtained and how many flowers a bee visits to produce each kg of honey.

How bees make honey

Honey is obtained from nectar and pollen from flowers and plants. It all begins with the foraging bees which go to the nectar sources, collect the necessary substances and transport them to the hive making long and exhausting journeys.

nectar and pollen are processed by bees for a long time. Bees mix the substances they have collected with their saliva and some enzymes. The nectar is then constantly processed and regurgitated.

Before the honey reaches its final form, it is necessary for the bees to eliminate most of the moisture present inside. Through the ventilation process, the bees heat the substance and manage to evaporate excess water from the nectar, obtaining only sugar crystals and other nutrients such as minerals, vitamins A and C, amino acids and enzymes.

Thanks to the ventilation, the humidity levels present in honey drop significantly. In this way the substance is able to keep for years without decomposing. The absence of humidity prevents mold, fungi or bacteria from proliferating.

Other substances produced by bees

Bees produce honey as a food source for their colony , in addition to this, swarms are also able to produce other substances such as wax, propolis and royal jelly.

The work of beekeepers

Bees have a long and rich history with humans. Their honey has been prized for its medicinal and antibacterial properties and their wax has been used for multiple uses.

beekeepers take care of meeting all the needs of bees by providing them with enough water, food (when in short supply) and shelter. In addition, they check the health of their colonies through regular inspections. Beekeepers constantly check the size of the hive, the brood area and look for signs of diseases or parasites in order to protect the survival and health of the colonies.

In exchange for this constant and careful work, the beekeepers collect a part of the honey obtained (about one third) and then process the substance with special machinery in order to eliminate any impurities. After the honey extraction and potting phase, the honey is ready for sale. Honey is a highly sought after product, marketed all over the world.

How many flowers do bees visit to produce one kg of honey?

Behind just one kg of honey there is an unimaginable job. To produce just one kg of honey, a swarm has to visit around 2,700,000 flowers!

If a bee were to do all this work on its own, it would have to visit at least 80 million flowers. Now that you know how much work there is behind just one kg of honey, you can also understand how precious this substance is and how the work of bees is truly irreplaceable and important.

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