A Library, a Cafeteria and even a gymnasium are common things for a college campus to have. But something that might be a bit less common is beehives, Mohawk College has several colonies on its campus.
Before a campus can acquire hives, it must first become a Bee Campus, a process overseen by Bee City Canada. Founded in 2016, Bee City Canada strives to educate the public about the importance of pollinators and protecting their habitats.
Bee City Canada’s website “As of 2024, Bee City Canada has more than 180 members from coast to coast, making clear that our message has resonated with Canadians and that communities across the country are prepared to take action to protect and promote pollinators.” Bee City Canada’s website says.
The company that manages the hives at Mohawk is a Burlington-based company called Backed By Bees.
The company offers a rooftop hive program for both businesses and schools. “When you work with Backed By Bees, you are working with the owners, a dedicated team that nurtures your hives with the same level of care and attention as we do our own.” The website states.
Backed By Bees also offers a variety of different experiences for the guests who visit their Honey Farm and Meadery including one where guests can wear a beard of bees.
“If putting a couple thousand honey bees on your body sounds like a darn good time then we have something just for you. In a short amount of time, we can have 20000 bees hanging off of your chest and chin giving you that 5 o’clock shadow look.” the description for the experience reads.
If wearing live bees as an accessory doesn’t sound appealing, what might be that some of the products made from the honey produced by the campus hives are sold at the Mohawk farm stand.
For more information about how to become a Bee Campus, visit Bee City Canada’s website https://beecitycanada.org/
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