How Beeswax Is Made

April 18th, 2007

Well obviously beeswax comes from bees, but the actual how and why of it is a bit more detailed and interesting.

Honeybees have a variety of uses for wax and it is the responsibility of the 12 to 18 day old worker bees to create it with specialized wax glands. The raw materials of wax are the honey sugars of glucose, fructose, and sucrose. The amount of honey the bees need to eat to make 1 pound of beeswax varies, but stronger hives are more economical in their production. It averages at 15 pounds of honey to 1 pound of beeswax.

Bees do not make wax just for something to do. Wax production only takes place under certain conditions. The colony must have a queen, the presence of pollen as a protein source, and temperatures above 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The two main reasons bees produce wax is to store honey and hold developing eggs. Most wax production occurs from April to June because queens are laying more eggs to keep the colony strong and because the nectar flow, which eventually becomes honey, is high and the bees need storage space.

When bees first create wax it is white but quickly turns yellow and gets is scent from the propolis and pollens as they shape it with their hind legs and mouth parts.

Bees make wax one scale at a time! Incredibly it takes about 2.2 million scales to make one pound of beeswax. That's a single 3" x 4" pillar candle!

The most incredible thing to me is that beeswax is actually composed of over 300 different substances! About 50 of these contribute to the wonderful honey scent we so love and enjoy!

- Jennifer