University of Toronto Mississauga
IN-48: Innovation B

UTM welcomed three hives and 15,000 honeybees to campus in 2017. The particular type of honeybee brought to campus is called a Buckfast bee - they are an English-bred strain that is resistant to parasites and mites, and they are known for being very calm and non-aggressive. Since 2017, UTM has brought in two additional hives, and the bees have multiplied to about 50,000 bees per hive.

The brightly colored hives, known as KoBee, Sting, Queen Latifah, Bee-Yonce, and Chubee, were painted by artist Vitalia Smirnova and can be found on the Instructional Building green roof. While they are only accessible to the beekeeper and facilities staff, UTM has made sure to position the hives such that staff, students and faculty can watch them hard at work through the large windows on the third floor.

UTM is committed to protecting the environment and having sustainable food service practices, and are always looking for new and improved ways to contribute to the existing sustainable and environmental programs and new creative ways to grow. UTM's apiary helps to combat Bee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) and helps the local environment by introducing the bees to pollinate gardens in the area. This program helps decrease waste and provides an engaging educational opportunity for students and staff alike. Don Forster, UTM's beekeeper, has offered small teaching sessions about tending bees and UTM's Community Kitchen has hosted workshops with recipes in which to use the harvested honey.

In 2017 UTM harvested 225 lbs of honey, in 2018 UTM harvested 541 lbs of honey, and in 2019 UTM harvested 1,017 lbs of honey from the hives. Depending on how much honey is harvested, UTM will use the honey for various initiatives such as UTM kitchens, Community Kitchen workshops, for gifts as part of donation requests, fund-raising initiatives, and for sale to the UTM community (where the money is directly reinvested back into the UTM Bees program).