ABSTRACT

Beeswax is an important product of honeybees. The West Africa honeybee (Apis mellifera adonsonii) lives in colonies. This study assessed the beeswax yield in Langstroth hives used in modern beekeeping in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Management, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike. Four Langstroth hives were selected from the Department ofFOREM apiaries to obtain beeswax during the harvest season in February 2019, 2020 and 2021. The entire riped combs in the four Langstroth hives were harvested and processed together in 2019, 2020 and 2021. The honey was processed using dripping method that involved the use of the muslin cloth while beeswax was processed by heating and the weights of beeswax were measured. The beeswax wax was also tested for physico-chemical properties: specific gravity, melting point, ester value, saponification value, refractive index, acid value, total volatile matter and ester to acid ratio. Results obtained showed that beeswax yielded by the Langstroth hives comparedfavourably with quantities yielded by other hives like the Kenyan Top bar hive. The physico-chemical properties ofthe beeswax samples collected in 2019, 2020 and 2021 varied significantly (p<0.05) across the years with the beeswax sample collected in 2019 significantly higher in specific gravity, melting point, ester value, saponification value and refractive index compared 2020 and 2021 beeswax samples. The results also showed that the physico-chemical properties ofthe beeswax samples met the national and international standards for pure beeswax. Beeswax produced from Department of FOREM, MOUA. Umudike is pure, free ofcontamination and can be usedfor various industrialpurposes. This study should be repeated in other agro ecological zones ofNigeria