🐝 The Honeybee and Modern Medicine
Photo by Todd Smith on Unsplash
A Quick Definition…
Keystone Species = A species that has a disproportionately large impact on its ecosystem relative to its abundance. The presence, absence, or population levels of a keystone species can have significant effects on the structure and function of the ecosystem, influencing the diversity and abundance of other species.
The Problem
The Honeybee is a keystone species. The honeybee is a cornerstone in our agricultural system as it pollinates over 30% of the global food supply. In fact an Ohio study suggested that it adds at least $20bn to the global economy.
Without the Honeybee, the supply of many of our most critical products would collapse. Coffee, Cotton and Chocolate would all be threatened. The importance of the Bee even inspired the statement famously misattributed to Albert Einstein:
"If the bee disappeared off the face of the Earth, man would only have four years left to live.”
Since 2007 we've become aware of the fragility of honeybee populations. The trend has seen increasing losses year on year. Driven by various factors, from climate change to heavy pesticide use, Bee populations are falling victim to more common diseases. This has led to the widespread phenomena of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in which the majority of a Hive abruptly disappear.
Though still poorly understood, in 2022 CCD caused the loss of 30% of hives for Bee-keepers on average globally.
As a critical worker in our food systems, the health of the Honeybee is directly linked to the health of society. Their decline poses a significant threat to the world’s economy and ecosystems.
The Scape
Imagine in the not-so-distant future, the honeybee populations have stabilised, colony collapse is a rare disaster once more and the productivity of both the hive and hive-owner has returned.
The obvious question: What changed in the time between now and then?
One key cornerstone was the development of Vaccine technologies to protect the Honeybee against the most aggressive bacterial, viral and fungal diseases. First approved by the FDA in 2023, Dalan Animal Technologies first developed the model for protecting other species against the growth of diseases.
The first vaccine was designed for a Bacterial virus commonly known as American Foulbrood (AFB). Highly contagious and fatal, the disease has been documented as the most deadly disease for Honeybees. Caused by bacteria Paenibacillus larvae, which survive for years and are spread across bees, hive products and equipment, Hive-owners had previously looked to treat the issue by administering heavy loads of antibiotics. Driving antibiotic resistance and the destruction of the Bee microbiome, the application of antibiotics for (AFB) was outlawed by the FDA in 2017.
Filling this void, the vaccine became transformative for bee populations. It works by feeding dead Bacteria to the Queen Bee of the hive. The developed immunity is passed onto the Larvae of the hive, massively increasing the bacterial resistance across the colony. The first of its kind, Dalan Animal Technologies offered Hive owners the Vaccine to administer at their own leisure or the opportunity to bring in pre-vaccinated Queen bees.
With no negative impact on the Bee or the honey, the Vaccine is organic, and chemical- and GMO-free.
This vaccine was quickly followed by others to boost resistance across fungal, protozoal and viral diseases.
The studies pioneering the value of the Honeybee in today's economy have stimulated further studies across keystone species. The value that Beaver's contributes to carbon sequestration. The value of Wolves to biodiversity health. The value of Bison in driving soil health.
Simultaneously, the success of Dalan Animal Technologies has prompted many others to innovate new business models built to protect and restore these critical species, profitably.
Downstream Value Creation
The first of its kind, the AFB Honeybee Vaccine has not only stabilised Bee populations but also prompted a wider cascade across society.
1. Beekeeping has seen an upturn in resilience and profitability. With Beekeepers having to stomach a 30% death rate annually, often at the hands of Colony Collapse Disorder, the Bee-keeping industry has eliminated one of its critical risks.
2. Honeybee populations have stabilised. Arguably one of the first 'domesticated' species, with honeybee-keeping having pre-existed agriculture, their rapid decline threatened ecosystem biodiversity as well as our food supply.
3. A new avenue of economic activity has opened. An avenue whereby humans – as keystone species ourselves – innovate to protect and regenerate other keystone species populations. Though the precise value of these species thriving is still debated, their impact is certainly outsized.
