The buzz behind homegrown 'bee glue'

A product discovered in honeybee hives across Australia could generate a homegrown health industry. Researchers from the University of the Sunshine Coast have identified 16 types of Australian high-grade propolis, or ‘bee glue’, containing various antioxidants and other chemical properties.

The team is led by chemistry academics Dr Trong Tran and Dr Peter Brooks, who previously collaborated on research that found exceptional antibacterial activity in Australian manuka honey.

Propolis is a sticky mixture of beeswax, bee saliva and resin from the native and non-native plants that bees pollinate, used in the construction of beehives. In the Australian beekeeping industry, it is regularly discarded as a nuisance product, but in countries such as Brazil, China and New Zealand, it is harvested for use in multimillion-dollar food and cosmeceutical industries.

The two-year collaborative project by the researchers found superior qualities in propolis scraped from honeybee hives across the country, including four in Southeast Queensland.

Beekeeper Murray Arkadieff, based near Ipswich, produced some of the most active propolis samples in the state — an opportunity for a new revenue stream for beekeepers and for more industry jobs.

The paper, published in Nature Scientific Reports, assessed the quality and chemical diversity of Australian propolis from European honeybees, common across the country.

According to Tran, the research confirmed that the chemical make-up of 16 propolis samples had more potent antioxidant activity than international types generating big profits overseas.

Tran said propolis has been used in many cultures as a natural antibiotic, but modern research papers have increasingly found much more than antimicrobial potential, including the possibility of adjunct treatments for cancers and COVID-19.

Researchers said the findings were encouraging for the beekeeping industry, which currently has 530,000 honeybee hives.

According to Dr Ben McKee, Chief Operating Officer at Hive and Wellness, more domestic harvesting would provide extra income for beekeepers and processors while reducing the reliance on imported propolis in manufacturing.

The researchers recently published three papers on propolis, following a 2019 AgriFutures Australia report that recommended further research into it. The next step would be tracing the plant sources of the samples to inform plant biodiversity measures and hive locations.

AgriFutures Honey Bee & Pollination Program Research Manager Annelies McGaw said the findings could strengthen the industry.

“The annual contribution of the honey bee to our economy is $14.2 billion; however, over recent years this industry has been severely impacted by bushfires, floods and pest incursions like Varroa mite,” McGaw said.

“Although there is still more work to do to better understand the benefits of propolis, the potential commercialisation could provide a very welcome and timely income stream for Australian beekeepers.”

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