There’s a buzz around City Hall as bees have moved into their summer home outside of the second floor of the Susan A. Thompson Building.
The hive is home to thousands of European honey bees. These bees are generally docile and only sting in self-defense or to protect the hive.
The bees forage up to five kilometres from the hive on urban gardens; including fruit trees, basswood trees, and flowers such as lilacs, which give the honey a unique flavour and colour. It is estimated this one urban beehive is capable of producing 100 pounds of honey per year.
The hive is maintained through a partnership with Beeproject Apiaries and was first installed in 2019.
Urban beekeeping has been allowed city-wide since October, 2017 with guidelines in place to manage the activity. The Province of Manitoba registers and inspects all beekeeping operations under the Bee Act of Manitoba.