The Problem
This research revolves around what I like to call the 3’Bs of the beekeeping industry: bees, beetles, and beer. Nearly 5 years ago, at age 12 my worldview changed when I went on a short fishing trip with my friend and his grandfather who is a beekeeper. I remember the tears in this 80-year-old man’s eyes as he described how decades ago, he would get dozens of barrels of honey and how that season he had gotten merely 3. I recall the distinct tone of his voice to this day and I knew I had to do something to help him.
80% of global crop pollination. 1 in every 3 bites of food we eat every day. A $183 billion dollar contribution to the global economy annually. That's what bees give us. However, over 50% of commercial honey bee hives have died since 1947, with scientific literature identifying pests as a leading cause. Small hive beetles (SHBs) are a major virulent honeybee pest. However, the gold standard and only EPA-approved in-hive chemical, coumaphos, is unaffordable and highly toxic. What I developed with the USDA is an organic alternative to these chemicals. This agent is just as effective as the leading chemical coumaphos and 80X cheaper, saving the global beekeeping industry $1 billion annually. This agent also poses no environmental toxicity or health risks to any organisms.
Your Solution
The majority of treatments for beetles are chemical-based, such as the gold standard chemical coumaphos. However, coumaphos is expensive, poses health hazards, risks environmental contamination, and leaves residue inside hive products used by us humans. Coumaphos is like chemotherapy. It may be effective, however, the radiation kills not only cancer cells but also normal cells. When I realized how nonspecific this current treatment is I began to wonder if there was an organic alternative to this problem.
Our oil-based beer blend is an organic treatment that was proven equally as effective as the leading chemical of the industry.
Founding Story
Almost 5 years ago, I had a life-changing experience when I went on a short fishing trip with a friend and his grandfather. My friend's grandfather who was a beekeeper, told us about the significant decline in his beekeeping practices. I recall the distinct tone of his voice and the tears in this 80-year-old man's eyes. I knew I had to help him and so I made a promise. Last November my friend's grandfather passed away. I wouldn't describe myself as just passionate about all of my work over the past four years. It means more than that to me. I owe my friend's grandfather for it.
Your Impact
For the past 1 year, I have been engaged in a tremendous amount of public speaking. I have spoken at over 15 different beekeeping clubs across the United States, youth associations, conferences, research competitions, universities, and also the United Nations. I've had the honor of impacting thousands of individuals across the globe and sharing my research findings with them to apply in a practical setting. I hope to continue my civic engagement efforts and outreach to reach an even larger global audience to raise awareness about the importance of honeybees and how to prevent their decline. In addition, I am currently working with the USDA to integrate the oil-based beer blend into an even more accessible and inexpensive design with electronics. Our long-term goal is to bring this solution to the industry at an extremely affordable cost.
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