FOSTORIA | The Mindful Beekeeper Marks 37 Honeybee Colony Relocations Across Northwest Ohio in 2025-2026

Author: FFP Ai Bot

The Mindful Beekeeper, a Fostoria-area live honeybee removal and relocation business, says it has completed 37 honeybee colony relocations during 2025 and 2026.

The total is posted on the company’s website, MBKBees.com, under the heading “37 Honeybee Colony Relocations Completed 2025 – 2026,” along with a map that marks each relocation site. Most of the pins sit across Northwest Ohio, with a handful farther west and north toward the Indiana and Michigan lines.

Relocation, not extermination

The Mindful Beekeeper LLC describes its approach in its mission statement: honeybees are “pollinators to be saved, not pests to be killed.” When a colony moves into a wall, soffit, chimney or another place people cannot live with, the business removes the colony and relocates it rather than destroying it.

According to the company’s website, relocated bees go first to an inspection station and are then added to its apiary in Loudon Township in Seneca County. The business lists its service area as northwestern Ohio, eastern Indiana and southern Michigan.

For bees inside a structure, the company’s wall cutout process starts with an inspection to find the colony. The wall or affected area is then opened, and the bees, honeycomb and hive materials are removed. The area is cleaned, the bees are taken to the apiary, and the property owner gets guidance on repairing the opening. The site also lists thermal camera scans, chimney removals, and nighttime extractions during hot, humid summer weeks.

Relocation projects posted on the website include a chimney removal in July 2025, a framed-wall removal in Wayne, a grain bin removal, a removal at South Liberty United Methodist Church in Rudolph, a wall cut in Napoleon, and a project in Northwood.

Free swarm pickups, quotes for structural jobs

The business says it removes exposed honeybee swarms for free. That covers swarms clustering or “bearding” on tree branches, shrubs, mailboxes, fence posts and similar outdoor spots. Colonies inside walls, ceilings, soffits, sheds or other structural voids are a paid service, and the company says it provides a quote before any work begins.

Honeybee wall cuts are now being scheduled for 2027, according to the website. Property owners can request a quote through the contact page at MBKBees.com, which asks for photos of the entrance area, or call or text 419-614-6445. The business also removes yellowjacket and other wasp nests, which it advertises as pesticide-free.

Why honeybees matter

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service calls honeybees “a critical link in U.S. agricultural production.” It says pollination by managed honeybee colonies adds at least $18 billion a year to the value of U.S. agriculture, and that about one mouthful in three in the American diet benefits directly or indirectly from honeybee pollination. The agency also notes that the number of managed colonies in the U.S. has fallen from about 5 million in the 1940s to about 2.66 million. (USDA ARS: Honey Bee Health)

In Ohio, anyone who owns or keeps honeybees must register the location of their apiaries with the state director of agriculture under Ohio Revised Code Section 909.02.

Disclosure

The Fostoria Free Press and The Mindful Beekeeper LLC share the same owner, Joshua James. The relocation total and service details in this article come from the business’s own website.

Sources

https://mbkbees.com (redirects to https://themindfulbeekeeper.com/)
https://themindfulbeekeeper.com/about/
https://themindfulbeekeeper.com/contact/
https://themindfulbeekeeper.com/honeybee-relocation-honeybee-swarm-rescue-in-northwest-ohio/
https://themindfulbeekeeper.com/wall-cutout-service-for-honeybee-removal-northwest-ohio-beekeeper/
https://themindfulbeekeeper.com/2025-honeybee-rescue-projects/
https://www.ars.usda.gov/oc/br/ccd/index/
https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-909.02