An original beehive was developed in Senegal nearly 15 years ago. The entire design is focused on the cost of the hive and the special conditions of tropical apiculture. It is very different to imported modern hives but is no less effective. Indeed, all modern hives are designed in the same way, with 80-litre capacity to store honey, about 20 frames to make it possible to remove the combs, sheets of imprinted wax comb foundation and an extractor for collection purposes. A hive of this kind costs African farmers about CFAF80,000/ Euros 122! In contrast, the horizontal hive costs less than CFAF5,000/ Euros 7.60 and it is just as easy to use as traditional hives. Its main strong points are that it is made of cement (cheaper and stronger than wood), it is horizontal (with no stand) and not vertical, the frames are easily made from sticks that are very cheap and the sheets of imprinted foundation are replaced by simple strips of ordinary wax. The honeycombs are not totally 'framed'. They can be extracted using traditional methods and the purchase of a modern extractor is not essential. This kind of hive can easily be made by beekeepers themselves and will give the same honey yield as a modern hive for a very small investment. More information from: Dr. Alain Vautier BP 6131 Dakar - Senegal Fax : +221 821 66 73 | An original beehive was developed in Senegal nearly 15 years ago. The entire design is focused on the cost of the hive and the special conditions of tropical apiculture. It is very different to imported modern hives but is no less effective....