**3. Proposal for Kikuji Yamaguchi method of natural beekeeping (KYAMENABEE)**

As described above, there are many problems in modern beekeeping that ought to be solved for the future of bee industry. Through my experiences and practices of

In production of RJ using artificial queen cell cups, the attention to be paid to the

larva-grafting operations and timing of harvest is also lacking with regards to obtaining RJ of high activity and high purity. Even when there are artificial queen cell cups, these are ignored by young worker bees in charge of RJ secretion. RJ is poured into the artificial queen cell cups only when they contain larvae. Therefore, it is necessary to artificially graft the just-hatched larvae into the queen cell cups. In traditional RJ production, third-instar larvae (3 days after hatch) are ordinarily

*Modern Beekeeping - Bases for Sustainable Production*

The larvae grow fast, and a surprising body size is achieved in only 1 day. However, the first-instar larvae are too small, making the larva-grafting operations difficult, and not only is the early fluid given already with watery RJ mixed in but also the larva acceptance rate is also unfavorable. On the other hand the third-instar larvae are close to fourth-instar larvae in terms of being large in size, and the larva grafting operations are not difficult. The larvae, however, are too mature and ingest most of the ingredients essential for growth contained in RJ, resulting in low-quality of RJ for harvesting. There is another reason why third-instar larvae are not used. The operation to graft larvae into the artificial queen cell cups has to be performed quickly and carefully using a transferring tool made of feathers (called a "larvatransferring needle"), so that larvae do not collapse. However, since the queen bee is laying eggs successively all day and night, it is fairly difficult to judge the age in days for each hatched larva. The second-instar larvae and the third-instar larvae can be easily distinguished, since the body size is considerably different, but among the

third-instar larvae it is almost impossible to determine the exact age in days (whether each larva is at the beginning of Day 3, at the end of Day 3 or at the

Consequently, the problematic point is that the larvae to be reared as worker bees in the worker bee-rearing cells are given a small amount of RJ until Day 3 after hatching and thereafter are given pollen and honey as a mixed weaning food. Since the later third-instar larvae reared in the worker bee-rearing cells have begun receiving the mixed weaning food (pollen and honey), defecation may have started. If such the larvae are grafted into the artificial queen cell cups, defecation also

Many of beekeepers do not perform filtration at the apiary. In the case of RJ, harvest is normally performed by collecting from the artificial queen cell cups with a bamboo spatula or an ink brush, etc. At this time, contamination from impurities such as hive scum and dust is unavoidable. It is therefore necessary to perform filtration immediately after harvesting. In addition, it is absolutely necessary to store at 2°C after harvesting. Cryopreservation must not be performed together with the impurities. However, at many apiaries, the harvested RJ is not filtered immediately at the apiary and is left for a long period at an ordinary temperature. I first started contract manufacturing of RJ in Japan 54 years ago. Since that time, the traceability of production history has been given special importance. The word "traceability" is now familiar, and it is originally the responsibility of beekeepers to consumers to leave correct production records of apicultural products,

Honeybees are vulnerable to agrochemicals. Honeybees have been seriously affected by the neonicotinoid insecticides that have been used as agrochemicals all

transferred.

beginning of Day 4).

inevitably occurs in the queen cell cups.

*2.3.5 Problems in quality control and production history disclosure*

since safety and functionality thereof was to be strictly assured.

*2.3.6 Problems of drug contamination and others*

**118**

beekeeping technology extending over many years, I have identified many problems existing in the modern beekeeping such as beekeeping in inappropriate environments, deterioration of colonies due to overloading of production and excessive selective breeding, reduced disease resistance, inappropriate processing, insufficient attention paid to quality control of apicultural products, and so on [5, 6].

the poor knowledge of RJ and RJ production led to the appearance of products

(i) basic beekeeping conditions, (ii) royal jelly production, so as to clarify the

In 1967, we organized contracted beekeepers for practice of the Natural Beekeeping in order to realize production of high-quality RJ as proposed by ourselves. The Natural Beekeeping and ordinal beekeeping are compared below in terms of

*Kikuji Yamaguchi Principles of Natural Beekeeping: A Novel Bio-Method of Natural Beekeeping…*

Domesticated honeybees have fixed the characteristics suitable for beekeeping through selective breeding, extending over a long period of time. In addition, there

Wintering (queen bee) Used for 3–5 years with wintering Disposed at the end of season

Conditions for bee forage Limited to agrochemical-free area Regardless of agrochemical usage

Complete isolation No consideration

Complete isolation Next to roads

Not more than 100 200–250

Inbreeding

without wintering

Multiple nectar plants or

Ordinary temperature

(cryopreservation)

Frozen transportation

**Main components of RJ Item Natural beekeeping Ordinal beekeeping**

cups, hybridization

Location of apiary Highland Lowland

Water source securement Water tray setting at apiary No consideration Filtration at apiary Performed Not performed

Antibiotics Not used Used

Time before harvest 48 h 72 h

artificial feeding

Colony management Rotation of 1/4 of colonies No rotation

Filtration at apiary Primary filtration at apiary No filtration at apiary

Processing facility Management at 2°C, filling Freeze/thaw/mix/re-freeze

Bee forage Single nectar plant (rapeseed)

Temperature control Storage at 2°C immediately after filtration

Transportation Transportation at 2°C and frozen transportation

*Comparison of the natural beekeeping and ordinal beekeeping.*

Larva transfer Second instar Third instar

Seed bee rearing Rearing from artificial queen cell

inferior in quality or component activities.

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.89647*

differences (**Table 1**).

*3.2.1 Seed bee rearing*

**3.2 Basic beekeeping conditions**

**Basic beekeeping condition**

Apiary isolation (from livestock farm)

Apiary Isolation (from

**Royal jelly production**

Number of Artificial queen

road)

cell cups

**Table 1.**

**121**

On the other hand, there are also problems in the major countries consuming apicultural products, such as Japan. Specifically, the following problems cannot be ignored: low awareness of the quality of apicultural products, insistence on "quantity over quality" and "cheap price", and ambiguous quality standards for apicultural products. On the other hand, beekeeping is an industry, and therefore profit cannot be neglected. In order to solve these problems, difficult countermeasures are required to meet the consumers' needs and harmonize cost performance on an industry-wide basis.

In this paper, I would like to propose the measures to solve the problems based on his past experiences and practices of natural beekeeping.

#### **3.1 Definition of natural beekeeping**

In the natural condition, secretion of RJ occurs when the colony in the bee hive propagates and the colony splits (swarm, hive division). For colony splitting, one queen bee is essential for each colony, and when the time of the split approaches, 10–15 natural queen cell cups are prepared in the hive. The queen bee lays fertilized eggs into these natural queen cell cups, and the worker bees secrete RJ. The first queen bee emerging and leaving the brood is tested by the worker bees to check whether it can work sufficiently as a queen bee. When it passes the test, the larvae of other sister queen bees remaining in the queen cell cups are killed by the worker bees. There is a principle that only one queen bee can exist in each bee hive. A new queen bee is reared with the RJ secreted by the worker bees, and the swarm phenomena are seen before the new queen bee emerges. After emergence, the new queen bee flies out of the beehive for a mating flight, copulates with drone bees of another colony and returns to the hive. However, the new queen bee may be attacked often by a foreign enemy and may not be able to return to the hive. In the society of honeybees, the egg-laying bee is the queen bee, and each colony will be in danger of extinction in the absence of the queen bee. When the worker bees get a scent of the danger of extinction, they will take emergency measures by finding third-instar or younger larvae growing in the worker bee-rearing cells and starting the construction work to expand the worker bee-rearing cells to queen bee-rearing cells while giving a large amount of RJ to such larvae. In other words, the larvarearing policy is changed. The cells prepared when the larva-rearing policy is changed are called "emergency queen cell cups". Utilizing this habit of preparing the "emergency queen cell cups", Inoue invented artificial plastic artificial queen cell cups and filed a patent application in 1963 [3]. On November 19, 1965, the utility model registration (Registration No. 785804, Japan) was filed for dissemination of this technology. This invention of artificial queen cell cups enabled mass production of RJ leading to dissemination in Japan, Taiwan and China. Only about one dozen natural queen cell cups are prepared in the natural hive, but it is possible to set 200 artificial queen cell cups in one bee hive, and about 750 mg of RJ can be pooled in 72 h in each queen cell cup. About 150 g of RJ can be harvested at once, enabling mass production of RJ.

In the period from the 1960s to the 1980s, the beekeeping business was active in Japan. There were 12,000 beekeepers and 320,000 colonies. Along with dissemination of the artificial plastic artificial queen cell cups, the previous beekeeping business targeting only honey production proceeded with production of RJ. However,

*Kikuji Yamaguchi Principles of Natural Beekeeping: A Novel Bio-Method of Natural Beekeeping… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.89647*

the poor knowledge of RJ and RJ production led to the appearance of products inferior in quality or component activities.

In 1967, we organized contracted beekeepers for practice of the Natural Beekeeping in order to realize production of high-quality RJ as proposed by ourselves.

The Natural Beekeeping and ordinal beekeeping are compared below in terms of (i) basic beekeeping conditions, (ii) royal jelly production, so as to clarify the differences (**Table 1**).
