Ten Years of Buzzing Success in Tokyo's Urban Oasis

On May 15th, participants of the Marunouchi Honey Project gathered on the roof of a building in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward to collect honey. This initiative, now in its tenth year, brings honeybees to the major business districts around Tokyo Station.

The Marunouchi Honey Project focuses on preserving urban biodiversity by raising honeybees in the Marunouchi and Otemachi districts of Tokyo. Office workers from nearby companies care for these bees. In mid-May, approximately 25 participants met to harvest honey from the apiary located on the rooftop of the nine-story Otemachi Building.

The participants placed honeycomb panels from ten hives into a honey-extracting centrifuge. As the golden honey began to flow, they celebrated. The honey, sold as "Marunouchi Honey," is also used by the Marunouchi Hotel's restaurants and other local eateries.

The project began in 2016. An executive committee was established by community development organizations from the Otemachi, Marunouchi, and Yurakucho districts, along with companies in the area, including Mitsubishi Estate Co. The committee has continued its urban beekeeping efforts to enhance the local community.

Following apiaries in the Shin-Tokyo Building and Shin-Marunouchi Building, an apiary opened on the rooftop of the Otemachi Building in March. The project aims to collect between 600 and 700 kilograms of honey from the Otemachi apiary this year.

The project's honeybees can travel up to 4 kilometers to gather nectar. Within a 2-kilometer radius of the apiary, there are abundant nectar sources, including the Imperial Palace and Hibiya Park. The bees collect nectar from various seasonal flowers, resulting in honey with diverse colors and flavors, giving Marunouchi Honey its unique character.

The nonprofit Ginza Mitsubachi Project supervises Marunouchi Honey. This organization, a pioneer of urban beekeeping in Tokyo, was started in 2006 by volunteers in the Ginza district, and its rooftop activities have expanded to Marunouchi and Otemachi.

To mark its tenth year, the Marunouchi Honey Project has launched a new initiative. Last year, DNA analysis of pollen in the honey provided detailed information about the nectar sources for each season, such as cherry blossoms in April and clover in July. This data will be used to help preserve the area's environment, for example, by incorporating the nectar source flowers into seasonal plantings.