Building a Climate-Resilient Beekeeping Foundation... Hwasun County Distributes 'Jellyking'

Pilot Project Targets 10 Local Beekeeping Farms
Support Provided for Rearing and Propagation Facilities, Including Smart Beehives

Hwasun County has begun distributing the new honeybee breed 'Jellyking' to improve the productivity of beekeeping farms and to respond to climate change and abnormal weather conditions.

On October 6, Hwasun County announced that it has implemented a 'Honeybee Resource Development and Breed Propagation Pilot Project' for 10 local beekeeping farms that have shown strong interest in the introduction of new breeds and possess advanced technical capabilities.

A scene of inspecting smart beehives in a rainproof beekeeping house promoted as a pilot project for fostering honeybee resources and breed propagation. Provided by Hwasun County.

This project was designed to establish a stable beekeeping foundation by proliferating and distributing excellent honeybee breeds suitable for the region.

In March, the county selected the participating farms and provided facilities and equipment essential for the rearing and propagation of honeybees, including cold storage units, rainproof beekeeping houses, smart beehives, and incubators for queen bee cultivation. In particular, the smart beehives are equipped with communication devices, external meteorological equipment, and internal sensors for temperature, humidity, and weight, allowing real-time monitoring of the hive conditions and surrounding environment. This enables farmers to quickly respond to abnormal signs and manage the hives more efficiently.

The superior honeybee breed 'Jellyking' was also supplied. Developed by the Rural Development Administration, Jellyking is a western honeybee breed characterized by a 31.3% higher content of 10-HDA—a key bioactive substance in royal jelly—compared with standard bees.

Jellyking demonstrates a 10% higher honey-gathering ability (honey productivity) and a 19% higher brood cell cleaning capability, which indicates disease resistance, relative to ordinary bees. The county expects that these traits will help improve the productivity and income of beekeeping farms.

Choi Eunsoon, Director of the Agricultural Technology Center of Hwasun County, commented, "We hope that this pilot project will help enhance the technology level and productivity of local beekeepers. Going forward, we will continue to promote the distribution of excellent breeds and pilot projects for new technologies to strengthen the competitiveness of our regional beekeeping industry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.