In the 1990s, the Bee Research Centre took part in a screening programme testing the potential effectiveness of over 100 essential oils and essential oil components against the varroa mite. Although sage, hyssop and thyme oils proved interesting, only thymol has been used in acaricide products. Thymol treatments require little effort, and there are a variety of preparations on the market. The advantages and drawbacks of thymol use are listed in the articles "Apilife VAR: A new varroacide with thymol as the main ingredient" and "THYMOVAR for Varroa control".
Bosset, J.O., Jeangros, B., Berger, T., Bütikofer, U., Collomb, M., Gauch, R., Lavanchy, P., Scehovic, J., Troxler, J., Sieber, R.
Comparaison de fromage à pâte dure de type Gruyère produits en région de montage et de plaine. (Comparison of Swiss hard cheese Gruyère-type produced in highland and lowland).
Comparative studies were conducted on highland and lowland Swiss hard cheeses: L`Etivaz cheese made at 2 locations 1300-2100 m above sea level, and Gruyere cheese made at Posieux (600 m above sea level) and Montbovon (approx. 1000 m above sea level). Botanical composition of the pastures differed between the sites studied, but cheesemaking methods were similar, except that milk was heated on open fires in L`Etivaz but in steam heated vats in Montbovon and Posieux. All cheeses were ripened in the same cellar under identical conditions. Composition of the milk, cream and cheese was determined, together with rheological and sensory properties of the cheese. Highland and lowland cheeses showed differences in terpene, trace element and secondary metabolite composition attributable to differences in pasture composition. Other differences, especially in volatile compounds and free amino acids, were attributable to differences in microflora, cheesemaking methods, etc. Cheeses made by heating the cheese milk on an open fire contained smoke constituents such as PAH. Highland cheeses had more intense sensory properties than lowland cheeses
Although the use of thymol leads to residues in the wax and honey, these are negligible from a toxicological viewpoint. Since about 2008 the use of thymol-based products has been declining in Switzerland, and beekeepers making use of these products have tended to experience greater winter losses than those using e.g. formic acid.