Partners from the Internet of Bees consortium met on Month 6 of the project. Funded by the European Commission, IoBee is continuously moving forward to achieve unprecedented developments towards improving bees’ health. By applying both existing and innovative technology, the project is aiming to provide beekeepers with the necessary tools to monitor their hives and to acquire essential and user-friendly information.
Partners are preparing to go beyond with IoBee. Not only will devices allow for beekeepers to have a closer and less disturbing control over their hives, but they will also enable a broader data collection and analysis. By establishing datasets and implementing analysing methods, data will become vital information for decision-making in the sector and at a government level. Gathered data will comprise different environments and practices in the beekeeping sector, allowing for the project to provide valuable information to all stakeholders.
IoBee partners remain ambitious to deliver a valuable tool for beekeepers and all stakeholders. To do so, they count on the multi-disciplinary set of expertise among them, which includes technological and technical consultancy, monitor production, educational, research.
Arnia’s founder and partner of IoBee, Huw Evans, emphasised the critical role of new technologies and the collection of information through Europe for the future of bees and other pollinators. He assured that “if you monitor enough hives and can grow the Internet of Bees to a critical mass, this provides enough information to benefit beekeepers who are not using the devices”.
Co-founder, Sandra Evans, even states that opportunities go beyond beekeepers. She added: “Therefore, getting the information from the right data will help policy-makers and citizens to ensure a balance between our need to feed the world and ensuring the protection of the organisms on which agriculture depends on”.
From the beekeepers’ perspective, new technologies may become an exciting tool. However, they must prove themselves useful, timely, reliable and practical. “Innovation in beekeeping needs to take into account existing practices and appeal to the beekeepers who depend on their bees for their livelihood. IoBee is an interesting project because it counts with the participation of beekeepers through BeeLife, particularly at this time when we urgently need new mechanisms to improve the health of honeybees throughout Europe”, stated Francesco Panella, president of IoBee partner BeeLife.
The 6M meeting marks the continuation of efforts to improve conditions for honeybees. Partners are fully engaged and motivated to provide beekeepers, researchers and policy-makers with the necessary tools to achieve a better future for bees.