The closest environment for the bees, the beehive, is scarcely focused because among the scientific community, researchers interested in apidology are mainly related to biology, studying honeybees as individuals or social groups and their environment, but lack the specific skills in materials science (international working groups COLOSS - Prevention of honey bee COlony LOSSes). However, among the scientific community, the influence of the hive and its different characteristics (material of construction, form, width of wall) is of no doubt regarding the impact of preservative treatments applied to the wooden hives, the role of the material on the inner thermoregulation, the local knowledge from traditional practices of beekeeping (Kalnins and Detroy 1984, Kalnins and Erickson 1986, Dodologlu et al. 2004, Lensky 1964, Lehebel- Peron 2014). Our work in anthropology of beekeeping is to investigate the relationship between “human users of bees” (beehives suppliers, beehives manufacturers and beekeepers) and the third party, the beehive. First interviews have revealed what we called the “beekeeper paradox”. Beekeepers rely on their beehive suppliers even if they are aware that the choice of building material for the beehives is driven by the production strategy to reduce the production costs (which has been lately in low-wages countries) making the beehive to be a simple box made from the poorest wood quality disposable after a couple of years compared to the “one-life” product that it used to be. The interests of the material for the bees is not considered at all. An ongoing survey is aimed at checking this assumption on a larger sample. First results are expected for the fall 2017.