| Project Detail |
The main objective of this innovation is to provide a durable and sustainable solution to the Varroa Destructor, a bees’ mite which – in the past 30 years – has spread all around the world contributing to the well-known Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) which has resulted in a drastic economic and ecological damage to beekeeping and pollination.
For the first time, The Bee Ethic Frames consist of an electronic resistor which is heated by an electricity flow managed through a control unit. Research conducted with the Universities of Perugia and Torino has demonstrated the high efficacy of the system, which has also proved to be safe both for bees and bee-keepers. The system kills adult Varroas but also infants which transmit viruses to the bees (an important research by Torino University is showing that the use of the system lowers virology in the bee family). This system does not generate any chemical residues, unlike the alternative chemical treatments currently in use. Since 2013, the Bee Ethic system is protected by a patent, which have been registered under PCT in 2015. Extension has been obtained in the main world markets. The Bee Ethic Frames have been sold in the Italian market for the past three years to the satisfaction of our customers. However, their market penetration has been slowed down by two factors: 1) high price compared to alternative solutions; 2) poor user-friendliness of the system. A new and highly innovative generation of thermic frames, the Bee Ethic Frames 2.0, are currently being prototyped to address these issues. By incorporating a micro-control unit within each frame, it will be possible to reduce costs drastically and to improve considerably the ease-of-use of the system. These improvements will open up significant market opportunities, enabling a widespread adoption of this innovation which has a very high potential to disrupt current practices in apiculture. |
