ECO-FRIENDLY AND BREAKTHROUGH MITE TREATMENT FOR HONEY BEES

Project Information

VATOREX

Grant agreement ID: 856047

DOI

10.3030/856047

Project closed

EC signature date 28 January 2019

Start date 1 February 2019

End date 31 May 2019

Funded under

• INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Innovation In SMEs

Total cost

€ 71 429,00

EU contribution

€ 50 000,00

Coordinated by

VATOREX AG
Switzerland

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - VATOREX (ECO-FRIENDLY AND BREAKTHROUGH MITE TREATMENT FOR HONEY BEES)

Reporting period: 2019-02-01 to 2019-05-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Varroa mites is a mite co-responsible for 85% of honeybee mortality. It has been traditionally treated with chemicals (miticides) which entail important safety problems that affect the whole value chain, from the bees (toxicity, internal damages causing honeybee mortality rates range from 5% to almost 30%) to the honey (less production, possibilities of contamination), passing by the beehives (weak colony, increase in the queen loses) and beekeeper (expose to toxic effects).
We have developed an eco-friendly solution to kill the Varroa mites harnessing different heat tolerances of bees and Varroa (in a range between 39°C - 42°C the parasite dies while the bees survive unharmed). Alongside, we have created a software platform that allows to remote monitor beehives.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

Vatorex has been demonstrated in operational environment with more than 100 early adopter (beekeepers). To deploy Vatorex and to make an holistic system integrating other components (heatable combs, bee weight, distributor, controller, varroa counter, hive eye, anti-theft) we have worked now in building a robust business plan that considers the technical, commercial and financial aspects, in order to minimize risks. We have worked in analysing the key points for improvement of the hardware part of the system, the software and monitoring sytems and the integration of all parts. We have confirmed the interest of the innovation among potential customers and stakeholders. The main need of beekeepers is to get a system which allows them to eliminate the Varroa mite with efficiency, reducing bees´ mortality with a low cost and with minimum impact on beekeepers’ health, the quality of the final product and the environment. All these aspects gives us insight to develop an appropriate work plan to carry out during phase 2.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Vatorex satisfies all those beekeepers needs and therefore comes to cover a gap that no other technology is filling: our customers are asking for a technology that is environmentally friendly and effective at the same time. Existing technologies are either effective but with important health and environmental concerns (chemical treatments) or less practical (more time consuming) or are sustainable but with very limited effectiveness. The high expectations in the market will result in the boost of Vatorex sales as outlined in the financial projection, Task 3. We estimate to achieve sales of 29 M€ of Vatorex V2.0 in the targeted countries during the first five years of commercialization.

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