Utilización del suero de leche de vaca en la alimentación de abejas y su efecto en la producción de miel

Abstract

ABSTRACT1456 In the parish of Punín, located at 12 km from the Riobamba city, Chimborazo Province. The use cow's whey in the feeding of bees and its effect on honey production was evaluated. Twelve two-storey hives of cross breed Italian bees were used, with a mean weight of 25.50 kg. A randomized design (DCA) was applied, with three treatments corresponding to the different amounts of cow's milk whey (250, 500 and 750 ml), in the feeding of bees, with 3 replicates for treatment, to be compared with a control treatment. The best productive results were obtained with the inclusion of 750 ml of whey, with a final weight of 41.00 kg a weight gain of 15.50 kg a daily consumption of 0.01 kg weekly consumption of 0.04 kg in a total consumption of 0.35 kg. The highest profitability was obtained by supplying 750 ml of whey, with a benefit / cost of 1.08. As a result of the productive performance of bees fed with whey, it was favored until the addition of 750 ml, since it presented the best results, because the whey had a good acceptability by the bees, especially at times of the year where the natural feeding of bees is scarce. It is therefore recommended to implement the use of whey as a food supplement in the production of bees in an amount of 750 ml.