Year One Wrapped: Cell Builder Efficiencies Research Update

We’ve just wrapped up the first year of our multi-year research project on cell builder efficiencies, and we’re thrilled to share a quick update.

Grafting Frame Loaded with Nurse Bees

The data is now in the hands of our statistician, and we’re eager to see what the numbers tell us. But even before the final analysis, what we’ve observed in the field has already been transformative.

This research has directly led to major changes in the way we breed queens. One of the biggest surprises? We recorded our heaviest queen to date

—267 milligrams. When we began this work, we didn’t think anything over 250 mg was possible.

Even more exciting: over half of our queens weighed more than 200 mg at emergence. That’s not just a win—it’s a major leap forward in quality.

We’re continuing to fine-tune our methods as we prepare for year two. Our goal is to make this research meaningful and applicable to both small-scale and commercial queen breeders. We believe the insights we’re gaining will help breeders everywhere produce healthier, more productive queens.

Stay tuned—we’ll share the results and what they mean as soon as soon as we can.

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From the field,

The Beekeepers Academy Research Team