Early in 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the first vaccine ever developed for honeybees — or any insect in the United States, for that matter.

Global populations of honeybees have been taking lots of hits, from climate change and habitat loss to pesticides and disease. Bees are susceptible to a number of viral, parasitic and bacterial infections, including an especially aggressive one called American foulbrood. The new vaccine contains dead Paenibacillus [pain-ŭ-bă-SILL-us], the bacteria responsible for American foulbrood. After it’s mixed with a feed given to queen bees, the ingested vaccine provides immunity for the queen’s developing larvae.

Bees are vital to many of the world’s crops, including $15 billion worth in the United States alone. It’s only right that we try to protect them as we do other livestock.