![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/062426-bees-300x200.jpg\")
BeeSafe research development technician Zane Schroh and master beekeeper Sheldon Hill gave a glimpse Tuesday into the work being done to help bees conserve energy and maximize hive output.–NEWS PHOTOS ZOE MASONzmason@medicinehatnews.com<\/a>\nTwo scientific projects operating in Medicine Hat are teaming up to innovate new technologies to keep bees healthier and improve honey harvests.<\/p>\n
Master beekeeper and Prairie Rose Public Schools instructor Sheldon Hill is researching whether insulated hive systems can improve the health and overall productivity of honey bee colonies.<\/p>\n
Bees regulate the temperature of their hives, a process that expends energy.<\/p>\n
Hill is comparing colonies housed in an insulated beehive with colonies housed in a typical wood structure to find out if helping with temperature regulation improves hive capacity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want more productive hives, I want them to be cheaper to run, I want them to make more honey and I want them to live longer,\u201d said Hill.<\/p>\n
Preliminary results suggest he\u2019s on to something. The insulated colony produced 130 pounds of honey, compared to 82 pounds in the non-insulated control hive, an increase in production of 77 per cent.<\/p>\n
But he is in the final stages of applying for a grant that would scale up his research.<\/p>\n
In order to do that, he needs data.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen I can go back and say, over a year, two years, whatever it is, you\u2019re going to be able to pay back this investment as a producer.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s where BeeSafe Biotech comes in.<\/p>\n
BeeSafe is a Lethbridge-based startup aiming to revolutionize diagnostic testing for beekeepers.<\/p>\n
It uses rapid-test technology to identify the presence of viruses and disease-carrying varroa mites within a given colony.<\/p>\n
The two-year old company is still in the testing phase, using traditional laboratory testing to confirm the accuracy of the new rapid test. So far, they\u2019re experiencing high rates of success.<\/p>\n
Hill is just one of four beekeepers participating in the BeeSafe pilot. Other hives are located across the prairies near Lethbridge, Edmonton and Saskatoon.<\/p>\n
For producers like Hill, faster access to that kind of information can help inform proactive decisions that could protect the rest of the apiary against a devastating infection.<\/p>\n
Hill calls the tech a potential game changer.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe way I\u2019d have to do it is to sample and send it off to a lab. That could take two or three weeks to get the result back. With this technology, you can do this within the field, and know immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n
To support Hill\u2019s project, BeeSafe\u2019s diagnostic tech is being used to demonstrate whether the insulated hives produce better health outcomes for the bees inside.<\/p>\n
Both projects are reliant on grant funding to keep operations going. In Medicine Hat, they\u2019re hoping their mutual support will help both projects go further.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a spirit of collaboration Hill says is often missing from scientific research, which is prone to fall into patterns of insularity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s a really poor way of innovating,\u201d said Hill.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s one thing about the bee research community, I feel like everyone is pretty interconnected, and I think it\u2019s getting better at collaboration,\u201d added BeeSafe CEO and co-founder Jenna Letain.<\/p>\n
Collaboration is at the forefront of Hill and his wife and assistant Stella Sehn\u2019s beekeeping team as they enter a new era of what has been a rollercoaster career.<\/p>\n
Their business, Sweet Pure Honey, was devastated by the pandemic, ultimately leading to the difficult decision to sell their farm. When they were approached by Prairie Rose agricultural director Nichole Neubauer to run a beekeeping program as the division prepared to launch its flagship agriculture school, it seemed like a second chance.<\/p>\n
Once complete, the agricultural school will be home to the teaching apiary, as well as a laboratory that will allow students to engage in the kinds of scientific testing BeeSafe is innovating.<\/p>\n
Construction on the Yuill School of Agriculture commenced Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know that\u2019s what this research project is going to prove,\u201d said Sehn. \u201cBut if we can help each other and collaborate and work together to get the word out and maybe inspire the next generation of scientists, that\u2019s great. And who knows \u2013 why can\u2019t it be us, for the next invention?\u201d
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