Why Would A Man Love Bees?

Ted Jansen is undoubtedly Chesterfield's most famous beekeeper—and the city boasts a number of beekeepers.

He founded Three Rivers Beekeepers as a way to spread the word about the honey bee. He mentors novice keepers through the Three Rivers and Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Associations.

“People don’t realize the importance of bees,” Jansen said. “One–third of the food we eat is affected by bees.” 

His honey has won scores of awards, including a blue ribbon for his Locust honey at this year’s Missouri State Fair.

He and his wife Marlene were interviewed for a PBS Nova series in January. Educating others about the importance of the honey bee is important to Jansen. 

He points out that fruits and vegetables are pollinated by honey bees. Meat-producing animals eat grains pollinated by bees.

“Half the bee population is trucked to California each year to pollinate almonds,” he said.  

In the business, pollination is the real money-maker for beekeepers, worth $14-20 billion annually, Jansen said. Honey production is worth much less in dollars, but no matter to Jansen.

“I love raising the bees,” he said. “It keeps my mind fit, keeps me physically fit. Really, the best time in my life has been in the beeyard.”

Jansen is a retired carpenter who got into the honey bee business quite by accident. 

“A friend who was a beekeeper left the area and couldn’t take his bees,” Jansen said. “I bought the hives and equipment 35 years ago and have worked the bees since.”

So beekeeping began in mid-life for Jansen, and his love for it hasn't waned. The number of colonies he maintains varies but Jansen currently works 47 small colonies of Italian Hygienic honey bees, a breed resistant to certain viruses.

Jansen sells fresh honey from a small cabinet beside his front door. He said he does a brisk business and could sell more honey than his bees produce.

The top beekeeper was raised on a farm in Bollinger County, MO, and always had an interest in insects. He hoped to be a forest ranger but farming and World War II changed the direction of his life.

“I had to help on the farm and then, at 18, I was drafted. Boys drafted in 1945 replaced soldiers who died in the Battle of the Bulge,” Jansen said. “We re-took the land from the Germans. I was in Austria when the war ended. It was a hard time for all those young boys.” 

After returning to the U.S., Jansen built a home in Chesterfield, married, had a family, and became an award-winning beekeeper in his home state of Missouri.