Biodegradable paper protects declining bee populations

Paper containing glucose and honey plant seeds can help protect bee populations from declining.

Pollination is necessary for plant reproduction and we rely on bees as pollinators for crop plants, including fruits and vegetables. However, multiple factors are causing bee populations to decline. For example, the increasing use of pesticides and the loss of habitat due to industrialisation. As a result of these changes, bees are travelling longer distances to search for plants, leading to exhaustion and death. A new innovation to help save the declining bee population is a biodegradable paper that provides energy to bees.

Bee Saving Paper is a project by Saatchi & Saatchi IS Warsaw in collaboration with City Bees. The paper was developed with Manufaktura Papieru Czerpanego w Kobyłce and other professionals in entomology and paper craft. Containing glucose and Lacy Phacelia honey plant seeds, the paper gives bees energy. With only 0.5 kg of this glucose paste, thousands of bees can be fed. In addition, the paper has a water-based UV paint covering. Painting this onto the paper in patterns create a visual for the bees similar to a pollen-filled meadow.

To carry out a field test, beekeeper Łukasz Kaczorowski, who lost more than 95 percent of his bee hives tested Bee Saving Paper. Passing the field test, Bee Saving Paper is now looking to collaborate with larger brands. Along with saving the declining bee population, the project raises awareness on the importance of bees to our planet.

We have previously published many innovations that aim to help bee populations. One innovation is a WiFi hive to monitor bees. It collects data on bees using WiFi and sensors and relays this information to beekeepers through a smart device. Another example is 3D printed robotic flowers that contain pollen and nectar. What other innovations can help protect the biological processes of our planet?