Preliminary results of survey on food safety aspects of drone brood from Apis mellifera L.

Abstract

Drone brood removal is a common practice for the control of the honeybee parasite Varoa destructor in beehives of Apis mellifera L. in Switzerland and other European countries. At present, the removed drone brood is not used. The demand for alternative protein sources is growing and drone brood has a big potential to become a new food product and a new income for beekeepers. In contrast to insects currently produced for food, honeybees feed in an open system in the environment, which is difficult to control. Therefore, food borne pathogens from the environment on drone brood need to be assessed carefully. We analysed samples of drone brood from eight Swiss apiaries regarding important food borne pathogens. This survey gives a first overview on microbiological food safety of drone brood from A. mellifera. Based on our results, further studies will be conducted to develop a process of drone brood production that is safe regarding food borne pathogens