What is royal jelly?
Royal jelly, a substance produced by the hypopharyngeal glands of young nurse bees, plays a crucial role in the life of the hive. This vital food, which feeds larvae from hatching until their third day of life, is also the sole sustenance of the queen bee throughout her entire life.
Worker bees consume it for the first 3 days, whereas queens consume it throughout life.
This secretion is characterised by its high moisture content, ranging between 60 and 70%, and is rich in sugars (10-16%) and proteins (12-15% crude protein), in addition to containing vitamins. Due to this composition, royal jelly is a delicate and perishable product, requiring proper storage to maintain its freshness and quality.
🔬 Physical and sensory profile
A gelatinous substance, partially soluble in water, with a density of 1,1 g/mL.
Colour creamy yellow initially, intensifying towards more yellow tones over time and storage.
Odour acidic and pungent; taste combining acidic and sweet notes. Royal jelly poorly preserved darkens and develops a rancid flavour: this reduces its commercial value.
Composition of royal jelly
Royal jelly is a complex secretion. These are the ranges commonly used for fresh product:
| Component | Proportion | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Water | 60-70% | The main constituent. Moisture is one of the quality parameters. |
| Sugars | 10-16% | Primarily fructose, glucose and sucrose. |
| Crude protein | 12-15% | Up to 45% of dry weight. Proteins and peptides are the main nitrogenous compounds. |
| Lipids and fatty acids | — | Highlights 10-HDA (10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid), unsaturated, plus other saturated fatty acids. |
| Minerals | Minor proportion | Present in small quantities within the nutritional profile. |
| Vitamins | Minor proportion | Royal jelly lacks fat-soluble vitamins. |
| Minor components | Trace amounts | Heterocyclic substances, nucleotides and organic acids. |
Ranges vary according to origin, hive management and batch storage.
Real uses: who buys royal jelly and why
Royal jelly is a beekeeping product with a history of use dating back to the 50s, popularised by figures such as Pope John XXIII. For the beekeeper considering producing it, what matters is not the list of virtues circulating online, but who buys it, in what format, and what makes a batch worth a higher price.
🏭 Sales channels
- Cosmetics. It is used as an ingredient in creams, lotions and tonics. This is a market that purchases in volume and demands regular supply.
- Dietary supplements. Formulations packaged by third parties, usually in small formats.
- Direct sale in fresh form. The beekeeper sells their own batch directly to the end consumer. This is where the best price is achieved, but it requires effective communication and a cold chain.
Why it is expensive
Royal jelly is expensive because its production requires skilled labour and highly productive colonies: queens must be reared, larvae grafted precisely, and continuous populations of young nurse bees maintained. It is also thermolabile and photosensitive, so it must be kept chilled and in opaque containers from the moment it is collected from the cells by suction.
💰 What makes a batch worth more
- Content of 10-HDA within expected values: this is the marker defining authenticity.
- Moisture and furosine within range: indicate freshness and absence of thermal treatment.
- Traced and documented hygiene, free from antibiotic residues or external contaminants.
- Correct colour and sensory profile: darkened or rancid royal jelly loses value immediately.
⚠️ Beware what you put on the label
There is no authorised health claim for royal jelly in the European Union. Attributing health benefits to it in labelling, on websites or in advertising may result in a formal sanction.
Research is ongoing into various components of royal jelly, but the available evidence is preliminary and does not equate to the product treating or improving any disease. Sell composition, freshness, origin and traceability: that is what you can demonstrate.
How is the quality of royal jelly measured?
There is no international consensus on standards for royal jelly quality, although several countries have established their own criteria. In practice, evaluation relies on three analytical parameters.
| Marker | What it indicates |
|---|---|
| 10-HDA acid 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic | Exclusive unsaturated fatty acid of royal jelly. It is the marker that defines its authenticity: without 10-HDA at expected levels, the product is not pure royal jelly. |
| Moisture | Must be within the range for fresh product (60-70%). Moisture outside this range indicates adulteration or improper drying. |
| Furosine | Marker of deterioration: reveals that the batch has been exposed to heat or stored for prolonged periods under poor conditions. |
These three parameters are what an industrial buyer typically requests before finalising a price.
Practising organic and responsible beekeeping is essential to ensure the highest quality of royal jelly, avoiding contamination by antibiotics and other external agents.
Introduction to royal jelly harvesting
The key is to have a thorough understanding of the variables involved in this process. One of them is the need for a deep knowledge of honey bee biology, since essentially the work involves queen larvae at an early stage of development. Great precision is required for tasks such as grafting larvae and the subsequent manipulations.
Put simply, royal jelly production requires the beekeeper to rear queens. When the concentration of royal jelly around the larvae reaches its peak, the next steps are to remove the larvae and extract the contents of the cells with a vacuum pump.
Another variable, as in any productive activity, is production costs in relation to market conditions and competitors. In this respect, for hives to produce royal jelly en abundance, they need very strong populations of nurse bees. One of the drawbacks when building the critical mass of nurse bees required is the ageing of these bees (royal jelly production depends on the hypopharyngeal and mandibular glands , which atrophy over time as the bees move on to another specialisation: producing the enzymes required for honey ripening).
Requirements for production
This requirement implies that colonies must continuously have young bees, as already mentioned. There are two ways to achieve this:
| Option | How it works | What it requires |
|---|---|---|
| a) Queenless hives | They receive periodic contributions of emerging brood. | Access to donor colonies. |
| b) Hives with a queen | With a queen excluder and an additional brood chamber for royal jelly production. | A very strict management and proper handling. |
Production and its tools
🧰 Equipment checklist
- Strong hives, with abundant populations of young nurse bees.
- Transfer needle (larva picker): Chinese picking tool, needle with magnifier, right- or left-handed versions, with light… None is better than another; it is a matter of trying and seeing which one suits you best.
- Cups and cup holders.
- Suction pump for extracting the contents of the cell.
- Cooler and amber-coloured jars: royal jelly is thermolabile and photosensitive, so it must be protected from heat and light from the very first moment.
And that concludes today’s session. If you are considering extracting royal jelly, we encourage you to do so from here. To learn how to produce royal jelly, patience and dedication will be your greatest allies. Continue…
The royal jelly market
If we intend to produce royal jelly, we must first consider its market. There is a large consumer market for royal jelly. In terms of competition, however, China is the world’s leading producer of royal jelly, and virtually all the royal jelly on the market is of Asian origin.
| Market data | Figure |
|---|---|
| Global annual production (decade of 1980) | ~700 tonnes |
| China’s share of global production | ~60% |
| Taiwan’s share of global production | ~20% |
There are no official statistics on royal jelly trade: these figures are estimates from the years 80 and serve only as an order of magnitude, not as current data.
To compete, in strictly economic terms, is simply impossible. The only viable strategy against this is straightforward: endow the product with a clearly defined differentiating feature.
Quality assurance, traceability and hygiene are important differentiators. The main problem is lack of information: if the consumer does not know the product’s origin or quality , they will generally think with their ‘pocket’ rather than their ‘head’. Only through effective communication can we compete with the Asian market despite the large price difference.
📣 Your only competitive advantage
Creating a market is a task of persistence, didactic skill, and consistency. You must consider how you will communicate your product.
Producing royal jelly requires a very high level of specialisation. Inform yourself thoroughly and exercise sound judgement when evaluating advice received. Do not rush. If you have clear ideas, proceed gradually. Give value to the product.
ISNI 0000 0005 1801 1100 | Joshua Ivars is the manager of LA TIENDA DEL APICULTOR and the author of this blog, where he shares technical and practical guidance for beekeepers. Drawing on extensive experience in the beekeeping sector, he offers advice and solutions based on beekeepers’ real needs, sharing his knowledge of equipment and essential beekeeping practices.
