# Commercial beekeeping software that keeps colony counts, mite counts and registrations on one yard record

> Commercial beekeeping is the business of running honey bee colonies at a scale where the income comes from honey, pollination contracts and bee sales. USDA NASS counted 2.60 million honey producing colonies in the United States in 2024, producing 134 million pounds of honey at an average price of $2.69 per pound, with pollination income of $226 million. Varroa mites were the leading reported stressor in every quarter surveyed. Neurobird holds colony counts, mite counts, treatments and registrations on one record per yard.

- URL: https://neurobird.com/beekeeping/
- Product: Neurobird Commercial Beekeeping Inspection Tracking Platform
- Niche: commercial beekeeping
- Buyer: commercial beekeepers
- Status: in development, open for early access
- Updated: 2026-08-21

## What Neurobird Commercial Beekeeping does

- Hold colony counts per yard with the date they were counted and by whom
- Log mite counts and treatments against the yard and the date, so a threshold decision is defensible
- Track colonies staged against each pollination contract rather than against an estimate
- Diary state registration and inspection dates across every state the operation touches

## How it works

1. **Set up the yards** Location, landowner, colony count and the state it sits in, captured once and updated when colonies move rather than at the end of the season.
2. **Log the visit** Colony count, mite count, treatment, feed and queen status recorded at the yard, with the date and the person who did it.
3. **Hold the commitments** Pollination contracts, staged colony counts and state registration and inspection dates sit against the same yards, so nothing is promised twice.

## From the source material

> Beekeeping is an essential component of modern agriculture, providing pollination services for over 90 commercial crops grown in the United States.

Source: USDA ARS, colony collapse disorder action plan, https://www.ars.usda.gov/is/br/ccd/ccd_actionplan.pdf

## Industry context

- **2,600,000** United States honey production in 2024 totalled 134 million pounds from 2.60 million honey producing colonies, at a yield of 51.7 pounds per colony and an average price of $2.69 per pound. (source: USDA NASS, Honey, released March 14, 2025, https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Todays_Reports/reports/hony0325.pdf)
- **$226,000,000** Pollination income for 2024 was $226 million, down 11 percent from 2023, and other income from honey bees was $51.3 million. Average prices paid in 2024 were $18 for a queen, $89 for a package and $109 for a nuc. (source: USDA NASS, Honey, released March 14, 2025, https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Todays_Reports/reports/hony0325.pdf)
- **396,820** Colonies lost by operations with five or more colonies totalled 396,820 from January through March 2024, or 15 percent, and 288,190 from April through June 2024, or 11 percent. (source: USDA NASS, Honey Bee Colonies, August 1, 2024, https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Regional_Office/Southern/includes/Publications/Livestock_Releases/Bee_and_Honey/2024/BEECOL2024.pdf)
- **52.0 percent** Varroa mites were the number one reported stressor for operations with five or more colonies in every quarter surveyed in 2023, peaking at 52.0 percent of colonies affected during April through June 2023. (source: USDA NASS, Honey Bee Colonies, August 1, 2024, https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Regional_Office/Southern/includes/Publications/Livestock_Releases/Bee_and_Honey/2024/BEECOL2024.pdf)
- **1,300,000** The USDA action plan on colony collapse disorder records that honey bees add $15 billion in value to agricultural crops each year, provide pollination for over 90 commercial crops, and that the California almond crop alone uses 1.3 million colonies. (source: USDA ARS, colony collapse disorder action plan, https://www.ars.usda.gov/is/br/ccd/ccd_actionplan.pdf)
- **24 hours** Ohio registration is annual, expires on May 31, and carries no registration fee effective October 1, 2025. A registered and posted apiary must be given at least 24 hours notice before pesticides toxic to honey bees are applied over half an acre of flowering crops within half a mile. (source: Ohio Department of Agriculture, apiary registration, https://agri.ohio.gov/divisions/plant-health/apiary-program/registration)

## Pricing

- Sideliner: $90 per operation, per month
- Commercial: $250 per operation, per month
- Migratory: $460 per operation, per month

## Questions

### What is commercial beekeeping?

Commercial beekeeping is running honey bee colonies at a scale where income comes from honey production, pollination contracts and bee sales rather than from a hobby. USDA NASS surveys operations with five or more colonies, and reported 2.60 million honey producing colonies in the United States in 2024.

### What are the biggest losses and what causes them?

Losses are measured quarterly. For operations with five or more colonies, 396,820 colonies were lost from January through March 2024, which is 15 percent, and 288,190 were lost from April through June 2024, which is 11 percent. Varroa mites were the number one reported stressor in every quarter surveyed in 2023.

### Do we have to register our hives?

In most states, yes, and it is usually annual. Ohio requires registration by anyone who owns or possesses honey bees, hobby or commercial, with a certificate valid for one year that expires on May 31 and no registration fee effective October 1, 2025.

### What does registration get us besides a certificate?

Pesticide notification, among other things. In Ohio, if your apiary is registered and properly posted, anyone applying pesticides toxic to honey bees over half an acre or more of flowering crops within half a mile of your apiary must notify you at least 24 hours in advance under OAC 901:5-11-02(B)(15).

### Does this replace our accounting or honey sales system?

No. Invoices and inventory stay where they are. What lives here is the yard record: colonies, mite counts, treatments, movements and registration dates, joined so a contract or an inspection has one answer.

## Sources

- [USDA NASS, Honey annual report](https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Todays_Reports/reports/hony0325.pdf)
- [USDA NASS, Honey Bee Colonies quarterly loss survey](https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Regional_Office/Southern/includes/Publications/Livestock_Releases/Bee_and_Honey/2024/BEECOL2024.pdf)
- [Ohio Department of Agriculture, apiary registration](https://agri.ohio.gov/divisions/plant-health/apiary-program/registration)
- [Georgia Department of Agriculture, apiary program](https://www.agr.georgia.gov/apiary-program-honeybees)
- [USDA ARS, colony collapse disorder action plan](https://www.ars.usda.gov/is/br/ccd/ccd_actionplan.pdf)

## Contact

- office@neurobird.com
- https://neurobird.com/