Living with the Buzz

Sustainable Honey Made at Home

Imaging what it would be like to get your honey fresh from the hive every morning? Yes you live in the city, but that will not be a problem because the hive will be right inside your house. Scared? Don't be. If the prototype created by Philips Design sees the light of day, you can enjoy all the benefits of bee farming, conveniently in your city apartment without the attendant risk.

This is what the Urban Beehive is all about. Urban Beehive is an innovative concept in sustainably produced food. “The beehive is designed to allow us a glimpse into the fascinating world of these industrious creatures”, so says the Netherlands based Philips Design. The structure consists of two parts: an early passage and flower pot, which is on the outside, and an egg shaped glass vessel. This glass vessel contains the honey comb and houses the bee colony. The glass is such that it filters light, allowing only the orange wavelength that the bees use for sight. Thus your interior lighting won't be disruptive to your co-occupants.

To have access to the honey when desired, all you do is release smoke into the hive to calm the bees before opening. Else you might risk unleashing the colonialists on your own territory.
Image source: Philips Design

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