Gary McDonald Business Editor

Some of the staff and pickers at work in the Gilpin farm in Armagh

POLLINATOR: A bee inside a flower

NATURE – and the art of reproduction – is being given a helping hand in Co Armagh in a unique initiative where farmers are being assisted to track pollinators to maintain quality of produce and improve crop yields.

Retailer M&S is teaming up with agri-tech start-up AgriSound to provide in-field noise sensor technology to boost pollinator activity.

More than 70 per cent of the world’s food crops grown for human consumption rely on pollinators for sustained production, yield and quality.

And one of 18 sites across the UK chosen for the experiment is Gilpin Farms in Armagh, where sensors will be placed in its pumpkin patches.

Two in-field sensor trials were launched last year to help farmers better support pollinators like bumblebees and increase crop yields.

AgriSound technology allows farmers to track the number of pollinators visiting their farm in real-time and target specific interventions, like differing wildflower densities, for improving numbers and yields and quality of crops.

Now the technology is being scaled up across the UK to cover a diverse range of M&S’s fruit, veg and salad farms, with monitors covering 120 habitats and more than 1,000 hectares.

The technology will provide growers like Gilpins – which supplies M&S with carrots, leeks, pumpkins and Brussels sprouts – with access to real-time data and insights to help set their farms up to be more nature friendly.

Richard Gilpin, head of operations at Gilpin Farms, said: “The technology will be invaluable to help us monitor the pollinator activity across the whole farm, but particularly in the pumpkin crops.

“We currently bring in over 100 hives of bumble bees and honey bees to aid the pollination of the pumpkins, and the AgriSound technology will monitor how effective this is and also help us to make informed decisions about further interventions.

“We’re delighted to have been selected by M&S as one of the locations for this expansion and are excited to see what beneficial outcomes can be achieved by these relatively simple measures.

“If we can attract more pollinators to our farm, this will be a huge success.”

Andrew Clappen, technical director at M&S Food, added: “Improving biodiversity is at the forefront of our plans to help farmers become more resilient to the impact of climate change.

“Pollinators are the unsung heroes of farming – helping to improve yields and quality while benefitting the wider environment.”

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: How technology is giving nature – and pollinators – a helping hand in Armagh – The Irish News

By Maiya Fleck

MANDAN, N.D. (KFYR) – For 18 consecutive years, North Dakota has ranked first in the nation for honey production, according to the USDA.

Though they are small in size, bees play a big role in food production, but populations are at risk.

These busy bees play a larger role than some might think. Honey bees are a vital part of our lives, and without them, the North Dakota economy, food production, and commercial goods would suffer.

Beekeeper Jess Gifford works with a colony of people for his company “Who’s Your Honey” in Mandan. Gifford said he’s passionate about doing his part to keep this country well-fed.

“I was told the other day a cantaloupe needs to be pollinated 14 times. So that means 14 visits to each flower just to produce,” said Gifford.

The USDA says honey bees alone pollinate 80 percent of flowering plants like sunflowers and 130 different types of fruits and vegetables.

April Johnson, an extension pollinator technician at NDSU, said bee populations nationwide have been dwindling for multiple reasons including colony collapse disorder, varroa mite infestations and habitat loss. Moving bees around the country can impact their immune systems and diet changes.

The decline of hives is always a worry for beekeepers like Gifford. He moves his bees to Louisiana and California during the winter months.

“These viruses have been so detrimental to us. We used to take the bees, 50 years ago, we would just leave them here and wrap them in insulation,” said Gifford.

He said the bees also boost the North Dakota economy by bringing beekeepers to the state.

“Two and a half million hives roughly go to California, but here there are eight hundred and some thousand hives, we are told by the state. They come here for the honey production and pollination, and we need the honey,” said Gifford.

Bees at ‘Who’s Your Honey’ in Mandan(KFYR-TV)

Beekeepers like Gifford have adapted and after two bad years, he feels 2023 is going to be a good year for production.

After the bees do their work on the prairie, he brings them back to the shop to collect honey and wax.

He uses the bees for honey, beeswax, pollen and also as pollinators in California.

North Dakota beekeepers produced 28.3 million pounds of honey in 2021, according to the USDA. There are many nationwide efforts for people to preserve bee populations like SaveTheBees.com.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: North Dakota honey bees are ‘buzzy’ playing a big role (kfyrtv.com)

Propolis is a sticky resinous substance found in bee hives.

Beekeepers look to untapped potential of propolis, or ‘bee glue’, as alternative revenue stream

by Courtney Wilson

A by-product of honey production largely discarded in Australia could provide an alternative income source for beekeepers across the country.

Hidden within the walls of their hives, bees blend up a unique mix of materials that scientists believe holds untapped potential in Australia.

Propolis is a sticky, resinous substance that’s sometimes referred to as “bee glue”.

Bees use propolis as a powerful sterilising agent as well as to seal gaps in their hives against predators and the elements.

‘Propolis is used by the bees because they don’t have an immune system,” Queensland beekeeper Murray Arkadieff said.

“Bees forage within a 7 kilometre radius of the beehive, so that means they cover about 210km²,” he said.

Murray Arkadieff has been a beekeeper his entire life.

Mr Arkadieff said the bees were able to look throughout that 210km² and search for parts of plants that could be used to polish their hives.

The bees not only forage for nectar and pollen, but also for other parts of the natural environment such as sap or bark.

“They bring that back to the beehive and they can mix it all together and it turns it into a really strong antimicrobial, anti-fungal, antiviral and antibacterial material, which they polish their entire hive with,” he said.

Propolis and its medicinal wonders

Propolis also has benefits for people and is used in many different countries in medicines, dietary supplements, and cosmetics.

“Propolis contains high polyphenolic compounds,” organic chemist from the University of the Sunshine Coast Trong Tran said.

“Australian propolis is very diverse and it also shows very comparable, even higher antioxidant activities compared with the other well-known propolis in the world, Dr Tran said”

Despite being part of a well-established industry elsewhere, in Australia there isn’t large-scale commercial propolis harvesting and processing.

“We’ve always mainly been focused on liquid honey production,” Mr Arkadieff said.

“It’s not something that Australians have looked into in a massive way, which is why it’s such an exciting opportunity for the industry.”

Peter Brooks is part of the research team from the University of the Sunshine Coast that has been part of the Australian Propolis Project, an initiative supported by the federal government’s Agrifutures organisation.

“When we started talking to beekeepers about what they were interested in they were saying: ‘Well this propolis product that they throw out, it’s got a lot of value, so how could we use that in some of our research?” Dr Brooks said.

Samples of propolis were collected from different areas around the country and were sent to the lab to be analysed.

“Like everything, if you’re throwing something away that you could be making money for — it could be a new source of income.”

To begin with, scientists needed to ensure that Australian propolis was valuable, given its specific properties were largely unknown.

A buzzing opportunity for beekeepers

Hive and Wellness Australia, formerly known as Capilano, asked its 1,200 beekeepers nationally to consider participating in a trial collection of propolis.

Samples collected from all over the country were sent to the University of the Sunshine Coast for analysis.

“Of those samples that came back I think there was around 55 per cent that showed high antioxidant compounds,” said Jessica Berry, an industry liaison officer with Hive and Wellness Australia.

Dr Tran leads the research team, which is focused on finding out which samples hold the higher antioxidant value, and why.

He thinks one reason might be that about 80 per cent of Australia’s plants are endemic, and so aren’t found anywhere else.

“So we can expect that Australian propolis is unique to other areas in the world,” he said.

The complete article can be found at; https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-23/australian-beehives-propolis-alternative-revenue-for-beekeepers/102625256o

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-23/australian-beehives-propolis-alternative-revenue-for-beekeepers/102625256o

Written by Jackie DiBartolomeo

Mike Palmer searches for a queen bee with a partygoer July 19 in St. Albans.  Jackie DiBartolomeo

FRANKLIN COUNTY — In a sunny field just off Kellogg Road in St. Albans, a group of 25 stood wearing an assortment of nets and hats. In their hands and swirling in the air around them were hundreds of bees.

The group gathered Wednesday morning to celebrate local and world-renowned beekeeper Mike Palmer. After buying his first two packs of bees back in 1974, Palmer is now in his 50th year of beekeeping. Over the decades, Palmer has become known internationally for his beekeeping methods with his brood of over 1,000 bee colonies.

Instead of gathering in a party hall to celebrate Palmer’s accomplishments, the group of beekeepers gathered in the place they and Palmer love best: a grassy field surrounded by the little yellow creatures that brought them all together in the first place.

When Palmer pulled up to the field to find 25 people waiting for him instead of the usual four or five, he was surprised and overwhelmed by the support.

“It means everything,” Palmer said. “It doesn’t feel like 50 years.”

Stationed at the 30-some hives placed throughout the field, partygoers took to searching for queen bees among the sticky honey and the dozens of bees attached to each frame.

With each queen found, the beekeepers carried her over to Palmer. Holding the queen in his hand with ease, Palmer took a dot of red paint to label her and put her in her own box, a throne of sorts. Guests watched on with each queen Palmer labeled, admiring his deftness with the small creatures.

Of the 1,200-some queen bees Palmer raises every summer, he sells half of them to beekeepers nationwide.

“This is my favorite thing to do…it’s nice to make nice honey, but it’s so much nicer to make nice queens and to send them all over the country,” Palmer said. “People write back, they call me on the phone; that, to me, is the reward.”

Guests at the party ranged from beekeepers who have been involved in the practice for decades, to amateurs. Yet with one guest qualifying herself as an “amateur” with eight years of experience, it is clear that learning is never really over in the beekeeping world…..

To read the Complete article go to; Local beekeepers catch queens for famed St. Albans beekeeper Mike Palmer’s 50th anniversary | Local News | samessenger.com

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Local beekeepers catch queens for famed St. Albans beekeeper Mike Palmer’s 50th anniversary | Local News | samessenger.com

PRESS RELEASE

HTF Market Intelligence

Photo by Matthias Münning on Unsplash

According to HTF Market Intelligence, the Global Honey food market to witness a CAGR of 4.2% during forecast period of 2023-2028. The market is segmented by Global Honey Food Market Breakdown by Application (Food & Beverage, Pharmaceuticals, Others) by Type (Table Honey, Cooking Ingredient Honey) by Distribution Channel (Hypermarkets and Supermarkets, Convenience Stores, Specialty Stores, Others) by Packaging Type (Bottle, Jar, Tube, Tub, Others) and by Geography (North America, South America, Europe, Asia Pacific, MEA). The Honey food market size is estimated to increase by USD 2.6 Billion at a CAGR of 4.2% from 2023 to 2028. The report includes historic market data from 2017 to 2022E. Currently, market value is pegged at USD 8.9 Billion.

HTF Market Intelligence published a new research publication on Honey food Market Insights, to 2028″ with 150+pages and enriched with self-explained Tables and charts in presentable format. In the Study you will find new evolving Trends, Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities generated by targeting market associated stakeholders. The growth of the Honey food market was mainly driven by the increasing R&D spending across the world, however latest scenario and economic slowdown have changed complete market dynamics. Some of the key players profiled in the study are Barkman Honey, LLC (United States), Bee Maid Honey Limited (Canada), Billy Bee Honey Products Company (Canada), Capilano Honey Limited (Australia), Comvita Limited (New Zealand), Dabur India Limited (India), Dalian Sangdi Honeybee Co., Ltd. (China), Beeyond the Hive (United States), Lamex Foods (United States), Hi-Tech Natural Products (India).

Definition:
Honey foods are defined as foods that have some honey as an ingredient. By gathering nectar from flowers, honeybees create honey, a naturally sweet food. It is a natural phenomenon for honeybees to produce honey. The bees help store the honey as a food source in their wax honeycombs within beehives. Honey-containing foods are very effective in nature because they provide the meal a natural sweetness and protect consumers from artificial sweeteners. Consuming foods with honey in them can help fend against and treat diseases like cancer. A surge in consumer interest in consuming meals cooked with honey throughout the world is driving the market for honey-based cuisine.

Honey food Market will witness a 4.2% CAGR, Top Key Players and Forecast to 2028 (digitaljournal.com)

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: https://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/news/htf-market-intelligence/honey-food-market-will-witness-a-4-2-cagr-top-key-players-and-forecast-to-2028#ixzz880N3RpmC

The sweet stuff can help with burns, coughs, anxiety and more

By Alison Gwinn,

AARP

Photo by Daily Slowdown on Unsplash

Honey’s benefits have been touted since antiquity — and it turns out the ancient Greeks and Romans were onto something: Honey really can hit the sweet spot when it comes to our health.

Though honey — a sweet, sticky liquid made by honeybees from flower nectar — is technically a sugar, “it’s also really rich in a lot of different bioactive substances,” says Mayo Clinic registered dietitian (and hobbyist beekeeper) Joy Heimgartner. Those include a range of good-for-you minerals, probiotics, enzymes, antioxidants and other phytochemicals.

There are four common types of honey: Raw honey is defined by the National Honey Board as “honey as it exists in the beehive or as obtained by extraction, settling or straining without adding heat.” Manuka honey, produced from the flowers of manuka trees, is known for its unique antibacterial properties, attributed to a compound called methylglyoxal, says Jordan Hill, lead registered dietitian for Top Nutrition Coaching.

Organic honey is produced without the use of synthetic chemicals, pesticides or GMOs. And locally produced honey has been reported to provide relief from seasonal allergies to local pollen, though scientific evidence to support that claim is limited, says Hill.

According to Hill, honey can be substituted for sugar in recipes, but remember: It has a distinctive flavor (which varies depending on the source flowers); it’s sweeter than sugar (the general rule of thumb is to use ¾ to 1 cup of honey for every 1 cup of sugar); it’s a liquid, so you may need to cut back on other liquids or slightly increase the dry ingredients in a recipe; and it browns more quickly than sugar (so reduce the oven temperature by 25°F).

But whatever way you use honey — in a recipe or as a condiment — always keep in mind that it is a sweetener. “Honey is a supersaturated sugar solution, and we should limit added sugars of all types,” says Heimgartner. Still, “if you’re looking for a sweetener that has more to offer, honey is fantastic.” Here are six reasons why.

1. Honey doesn’t raise your blood sugar as rapidly as white sugar

“Honey is metabolized differently from white sugar and produces less of a sugar spike,” says registered dietitian and nutritionist Dawn Jackson Blatner, author of The Flexitarian Diet. “Research suggests that honey may enhance insulin sensitivity and may support the pancreas, the organ that produces insulin.” A 2018 review of preliminary studies points to honey’s “hypoglycemic effect” and use as a “novel antidiabetic agent that might be of potential significance for the management of diabetes and its complications.”

And a 2022 study out of the University of Toronto found that honey improves important measures of cardiometabolic health, including blood sugar, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, especially if the honey is raw and from a single source.

2. Honey can help with wound or burn therapy

“Honey has been used for wound healing for centuries, and certain types of honey, like medical-grade honey, have shown potential in wound management due to their antimicrobial properties and ability to promote healing,” says Hill, who nonetheless advises consulting health care professionals for appropriate wound care. Heimgartner, a board-certified oncology specialist, says, “There’s actually a lot of evidence that using honey during oral cancer radiation treatment helps to prevent some of the nasty side effects of mucositis,” or inflammation of the mouth.

How does it work? “Research suggests that honey prevents or controls the growth of bacteria on the wound, helps to slough off dead tissue and microorganisms, and transports oxygen and nutrients into a wound for quicker healing,” says Blatner.

Native plants and naturalistic perennials attract bees and other pollinators.

​Create Your Own Pollinator Garden

If you want to create your own pollinator garden for bees to forage in, consider these tips from Emily Erickson, postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Davis, department of evolution and ecology.

• Opt for native plants or naturalistic perennials.
• Choose plants of varying colors, shapes and bloom times so you can support a variety of pollinators throughout the season.
• Avoid double-flowered varieties (those with extra petals) or plants that look drastically different from their wild relatives.
• Avoid pesticides.
• Leave areas in your yard that can serve as nesting habitats, such patches of bare soil, brush, twigs or woody stems, where many native pollinators make their homes.
• Which plants are right for you depends on your location and climate, so ask your local nursery for advice — or simply walk through a nursery and notice which plants seem to attract pollinators.

3. Honey is rich in polyphenols, including flavonoids

Why does that matter? Because those two substances have both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, meaning they protect our bodies against oxidative stress, which can manifest as cancer, heart disease or other diseases. But Hill cautions that the polyphenols in honeys can vary significantly, depending on the type of honey and its floral source.

4. Honey can be an effective cough suppressant

A 2020 meta-analysis found that honey provides a widely available and inexpensive alternative to antibiotics in controlling cough frequency and severity, though it concluded that further studies were needed. “It is believed that honey’s thick texture and possible antioxidant and antimicrobial properties may provide relief for cough symptoms,” Hill says, but she adds the caveat that honey should never be given to infants under 1 year of age due to a risk of botulism.

5. Honey may provide antidepressant or anti-anxiety benefits.

“Research suggests that polyphenol compounds in honey such as apigenin, caffeic acid, chrysin, ellagic acid and quercetin support a healthy nervous system, which may enhance memory and support mood,” says Blatner. Though more study is needed, a 2014 review of research says that one established nootropic (or cognitive-enhancing) property of honey “is that it assists the building and development of the entire central nervous system, particularly among newborn babies and preschool-age children, which leads to the improvement of memory and growth, a reduction of anxiety, and the enhancement of intellectual performance later in life.”

6. Honey may support a healthy gut

Early research indicates that “honey has an extra-special ability to support a healthy gut microbiome because it contains both probiotics, or good bacteria, and prebiotic properties, which help good bacteria thrive,” says Blatner, though the evidence is limited. A 2022 paper funded by the National Institute of Health, Malaysia, concluded that “honey bees and honey, which have the potential to be good sources of probiotics and prebiotics, need to be given greater attention and more in-depth research so they can be taken to the next level.”

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: https://www.aarp.org/health/healthy-living/info-2023/honey-health-benefits.html

Reuters

Bee hives at a farm on Kangaroo Island, Australia January 20, 2020. Picture taken January 20, 2020. REUTERS/Tracey Nearmy/File Photo

CANBERRA (Reuters) – The Australian government said it will stop trying to eradicate the Varroa mite, a parasite that kills honey bees, and will instead try to manage its spread, which is likely to make pollination of crops such as almonds more costly.

The decision ends an A$132 million ($85.3 million)eradication plan that has destroyed more than 14,000 hives in southeastern Australia since the mite was discovered there in June 2022.

The federal government said the decision was taken on Tuesday by the National Management Group (NMG), which is driving the Varroa programme nationwide.

In a statement on Wednesday, the New South Wales government, speaking on behalf of the NMG, said non-compliant and illegal movement of hives had spread the parasite further and made it impossible to contain.

Commercial crops including almonds, apples and avocados are dependent on pollination by European honey bees, with huge numbers of hives moved during spring flowering to bring bees to plants.

The Australian government has said a widespread mite infestation could destroy most wild European honey bee nests and managed hives not adapted to Varroa, reducing pollination and causing losses of over A$70 million a year.

“The recent spike in new detections have made it clear that the Varroa mite infestation is more widespread and has also been present for longer than first thought,” the New South Wales government said in a statement.

“The potential to eradicate is no longer possible… We now need to work collaboratively to manage and minimise the impact of Varroa.”

Varroa is a reddish-brown mite around 1 mm in diameter that attaches itself to European and Asian honey bees and feeds on them, weakening them and killing colonies.

The mite also carries viruses and has caused the collapse of honey bee populations around the world.

Varroa does not target native Australian honey bees.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australia-abandons-efforts-eradicate-deadly-honey-bee-parasite-2023-09-20/

• By HARLEIGH CUPP Daily News-Record

Barry Gibson, owner of Hannah Bee Apiary, inspects his hives.

A gentle humming filled the air surrounding 12 stacked wooden hives — some painted in pastel pink, blue and yellow — while Barry Gibson lifted the lids to peek in on his treasured honeybees.

Hannah Bees Apiary has a story as simple and sweet as the honey its more than 600,000 bees produce each year.

Gibson is a retired U.S. Navy corpsmen of more than 20 years that served on the front lines in Iraq during several different deployments. He peaked an interest in bees and read through several books about apiculture before having the opportunity to take free classes through Michigan State University as a serviceman.

His education certainly did not go to waste, as Gibson rattled off tidbits about the world of bees that he had grown so fascinated by.

He met Hannah Wills in 2019 and moved to their home in Harrisonburg the following year. Coincidentally, Wills father kept bees growing up and so she encouraged Gibson to start a few of his own in their backyard. He listened and what started as a hobby hive two years ago has grown into a vision for starting a small business.

Last month, Gibson received a $1,000 scholarship through a partnership of Tractor Supply Company and the Farmer Veteran Coalition that he had applied for earlier in the year. As one of 60 Veteran farmer honorees from across the nation, he plans to use the funds to construct a storage building for his beekeeping supplies — which are currently housed under the carport — and to expand his apiary to have hives in other locations.

Gibson’s real dream, he said, is to open a coffee shop as a place to display Hannah’s artwork and provide a space for veterans — and anyone else in the community — to gather and share “old war stories.” Honey is how he plans to get there.

“I didn’t start this to make a profit,” explained Gibson. “I have PTSD, and it helps me a lot just being up there [with my bees]. They have their own little world, and it’s soothing to me just to be up there.”

Get in touch with Hannah Bees Apiary and follow Gibson’s farm journey online through his new website at www.hannahbeesapiary.com.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: https://www.dnronline.com/news/harrisonburg-veteran-wins-tractor-supply-grant-to-expand-apiary/article_7e9ae844-4d1f-56ba-a432-e92939d28057.html

ABC Rural

/ By Lucas Forbes, Bronwyn Herbert, Emily Doak, and Tina Quinn

Beekeepers Denille Banham and Daniel Costa stand to lose all their hives due to varroa mite. (ABC News: Tina Quinn)

As authorities race to control the outbreak of varroa mite in Australia’s bee population, many beekeepers are saying it is time to learn to live with the mite.

Key points:

• A US bee health group is working on a “varroacide” to defeat the pest
• A New Zealand beekeeper says the worst effects of varroa mite were over in two years
• Beekeepers losing hives to euthanasia in Australia are calling for a policy shift from eradication to management

But what would that look like?

More than a year after varroa mite was first found at the Port of Newcastle, detections of the parasite have ramped up.

In recent weeks, thousands of beehives have been quarantined or euthanased after the mite was detected in hives in Kempsey on the NSW mid-north coast, many of which were delivered to parts of the Sunraysia and Riverina districts for almond pollination.

With Australia the only continent in the world where varroa has not taken hold, authorities have maintained a policy of eradication.

Varroa mites can destroy entire hives. (Supplied: Gilles San Martin)

For Kempsey beekeepers Denille Banham and Daniel Costa, the eradication strategy means their hives will be destroyed after varroa was found in some hives taken to Nericon, near Griffith, for the pollination season.

They have 750 hives in the eradication zones and 480 will have to be destroyed.

“Your 23 years of hard work, blood, sweat and tears, just all gone,” Mr Costa said.

Beekeepers are now calling for Australia to move towards managing the mite and living with it, instead of trying to eradicate it.

How is varroa mite managed?

The United States has been living with varroa mite since the late 1980s, when the pest was accidentally introduced to Florida.

The Honey Bee Health Coalition (HBHC) teaches beekeepers how to manage varroa mite and invests in research into developing pesticides that could kill the pest.

HBHC facilitator Matthew Mulica said varroa mite was so common in North America that if any hive did not have it now, it would within the next year.

That is why American beekeepers test for varroa two to four times a year.

If there are more than three mites per 100 bees, the coalition says beekeepers should start control measures immediately.

It is crucial to identify varroa to stop them spreading.

“If you do nothing, then in their last dying breath bees will fly off and infect other hives around you,” Mr Mulica said.

Regular testing carried out

One of the costs of management is hiring people to test hives and apply treatments.

Tumut beekeeper John Casey estimated his labour bill would double under a management policy, but said that would be preferable to staying with eradication.

“We’ve got 2,000 hives up at Euroley in the red zone. We don’t know if they’re going to let us move them or euthanase them,” he said.

“It’s a big loss of the bees and also the income we could make off them for the next couple of years.”

Hundreds of Belinda and John Casey’s hives have been impacted by measures aimed at controlling varroa mite. (ABC Rural: Emily Doak)

In the US, beekeepers can use chemical treatments to kill the mites, and there are some non-chemical techniques as well that interrupt the life cycle of the hive and slow varroa down.

Since varroa mite grows in the pupa of bees, producers can also remove the queen from the hive temporarily to reduce the number of pupa and cut down the opportunities for the mite to grow.

Mr Mulica said the HBHC was working with scientists in the US, Canada and Spain to create a “varroacide” to control the pest.

“We’re looking at all of these things and testing different compounds to find that next miracle molecule, if you will,” he said.

Varroa-resistant bees are also being developed which attack mites or kick infested bees out of the colony.

Silver linings in New Zealand

New Zealand beekeeper Barry Foster said the varroa mite outbreak in 2000 had put up to a third of beekeepers out of business, but there was a silver lining for those who remained.

Around the world varroa mites have killed off almost all the feral bees — the ones bred by beekeepers that escape into the wild.

Feral bees pollinate a lot of crops for free, but with fewer hives in the wild there is more demand for commercial pollination services, and that is what happened in New Zealand.

Mr Foster said beekeepers were paid more for their services and the industry recovered in just a couple of years.

“It was a fairly quick turnaround. Probably within a year or two we had gone through the most difficult learning and mental health period,” Mr Foster said.

He said the beekeeping industry had to adapt.

“You have to be a better beekeeper because of varroa and more on your game and better at planning,” he said.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Bee pest varroa mite common in New Zealand and the US where beekeepers have learned to live with it – ABC News

ABC Rural

/ By Joanna Prendergast, Sophie Johnson, and Belinda Varischetti

Pemberton beekeeper Mike Cernotta says WA needs to take the varroa threat more seriously. (ABC South West WA, Jon Daly)

West Australian honey producers say they are increasingly anxious about the spread of the destructive varroa mite across New South Wales and fear complacency has left the state’s industry ill-prepared for an outbreak.

Key points:

• As varroa spreads in NSW, the WA beekeeping industry is divided over whether eradication is still possible
• There are fears traffic moving from the east will inadvertently transport the destructive mite into WA
• But authorities say they are “incredibly confident” it can be kept out.

Varroa destructor attacks European honeybees and is regarded as one of the greatest threats to Australia’s honey and honey bee pollination plant industries.

It was detected in sentinel hives in NSW in June last year, but has spread to several new locations in recent weeks, prompting debate about whether eradication is possible, or if NSW should transition to a varroa management policy.

Pemberton beekeeper and WA Bee Industry Council vice chair Mike Cernotta said there was a “huge risk” of varroa entering WA through traffic on the east-west freight link or through swarms of feral bees, and the state was not prepared.

“We had a national blitz where we encouraged beekeepers all over the nation to do alcohol washes, which is the primary detection tool to look for varroa, and unfortunately the uptake in WA was relatively poor … I think it’s complacency,” he said.

“We are pleading with WA beekeepers to do the minimum.

Varroa mite was first detected in Australian in June last year. (ABC Great Southern: Sophie Johnson)

“Time is ticking … the risk is growing, and we really need people to get serious about biosecurity, because otherwise we may find ourselves in a similar situation to NSW where we are scrambling to try and get on top of this pest. ”

Mr Cernotta said he supported eradication attempts continuing in NSW.

“I’d be lying if I said we didn’t have extreme levels of anxiety, because there is nothing we can do other than sit and watch,” he said.

“It’s devastating to see beekeepers facing [hive destruction], but the reality is they’re taking a hit for the rest of the nation’s beekeepers.”

Moving forward with varroa

Kim Fewster has been in the honey industry for 50 years, selling into a range of international markets…

To read the complete article go to; WA honey industry fears biosecurity ‘complacency’ has left state ill-prepared for a varroa mite outbreak – ABC News

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: WA honey industry fears biosecurity ‘complacency’ has left state ill-prepared for a varroa mite outbreak – ABC News

Pollination is crucial to more than 1,200 food crops. It nourishes nearly 200,000 different plants that yield various oils, cotton, seeds, and vegetables. (Victoria Virgona)

Danielle Smith, Producer

Tennessee is home to 350 species of bees and some of them are in trouble.

Bees and other pollinators are on the decline across the country, and some members of Congress are proposing new rules to protect them. The reintroduction of the Saving America’s Pollinators Act aims to protect bees, birds, butterflies, bats and hummingbirds by addressing the effects of pesticides and other toxins on their habitats.

Lori Ann Burd, environmental health director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said the bill would increase the collaborative role for the new Center for Pollinator Conservation and give the public a voice in science-based decision-making. She stressed saving pollinators is essential for the future of food production.

“One amazing thing about pollinators is that we all recognize we need them,” Burd explained. “One in every three bites of food that we eat needs insect pollination, and we know that our lives without pollinators would be infinitely more bleak.”

Burd argued it is an issue anyone should be able to rally behind, but this is the fifth time the Saving America’s Pollinators Act has been introduced in Congress in the last decade.

In Tennessee, the Department of Transportation is doing its part with a Pollinator Habitat program, which includes giving away milkweed seeds for planting to attract monarch butterflies.

Burd pointed out the current legislative effort coincides with the Environmental Protection Agency’s plan to implement safeguards for 27 of the most vulnerable endangered species, including some pollinators, from pesticides.

“The plan the EPA has released is really an innovative new plan to tackle the threat of pesticides to the endangered species that are most imperiled by pesticides,” Burd noted. “The list includes birds, fish, plants, mammals; all species that are especially impacted by pesticides.”

She encouraged people to put flowering plants in their yards and gardens, especially native plants, as pollinators rely on a wide range of plants to meet their basic needs.

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Legislation Aims to Protect U S Food Supply by Saving Pollinators / Public News Service

A botanical survey at the end of May revealed more than 30 different plant species

By: Safia Samee Ali

Trinity College in Dublin Dave G Kelly/Getty

A rare Irish orchid was discovered on a Dublin college lawn after the school stopped cutting its grass as part of a “no mow” initiative to promote pollination and wildflower blooming.

A botany professor at Trinity College Dublin found the rare flower, called the broad-leaved helleborine, under a birch tree in one of the school’s sprawling lawns after it stopped mowing.

The find was significant, as the plant is never very common in any one place and is mostly found in woodlands, the college said in a statement.

“This is super exciting; it is a rare native Irish orchid,” Jenny McElwain, who found the flower, told The Irish Times. “If you looked, you would find it in most counties in Ireland, but you’d probably only find one, and it would pop up so infrequently. It might pop up once, and you wouldn’t see it again for 10 years, and three of them have popped up in the lawn.”

The environmental factors required to grow are rare to find, as the seeds of this orchid need the right fungal partner to germinate and grow for the first few weeks of its life.

“This one needs a perfect set of circumstances. If it finds the exact right fungal partner, it forms fungi around its roots,” McElwain said.

This “complex” environment would never have been discovered if the university hadn’t stopped mowing. After discovering the flower, the school extended the no mow period through June, during which time a second orchid species popped up, the college said.

A botanical survey of the lawns at the end of May revealed more than 30 different plant species flowering on the lawns, the college said.

McElwain said it’s not clear how the orchid seeds found their way to the school’s lawn, but guessed they may have been transported by birds, humans, or the wind.

“Or possibly, these orchids have simply been lying in wait, dormant in the soil for decades, waiting to be given a chance to grow.”

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: College Stops Mowing Lawn to Promote Pollination, Discovers Rare Flower – The Messenger

Darko Mandich, creator of a plant-based honey called Mellody, recently appeared on the PBN podcast

BY POLLY FOREMAN

Despite what many people think, honey is not an environmentally friendly food choice

The creator of the “world’s first” plant-based honey replica has described the honey industry as one of the “biggest” examples of greenwashing that exists.

Darko Mandich recently appeared on an episode of the Plant Based News podcast with Robbie Lockie. The Serbian entrepreneur is known for founding a company called MeliBio. The company makes what’s thought to be the first ever vegan honey – named Mellody – with the same molecular composition as honey made from bees.

Mandich worked for a number of conventional food conglomerates in Eastern Europe before entering the plant-based space. He specialized in the honey industry, but became increasingly concerned about the huge environmental costs of exploiting bees to create the food. “The biggest impact that honey production has is the impact it has on our biodiversity,” he told Lockie. “Learning about that was something that was kind of an epiphany moment for me.”

Mellody/Evan SungMellody is said to look and taste just like real honey

The environmental impact of honey

Many people believe that honey production benefits the environment, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Honey comes from just one bee species, the apis mellifera (also known as the western honey bee). Artificially breeding these bees and introducing them to non-native lands reaps havoc on local ecosystems, meaning other bee species decline. Due to their efficiency at collecting pollen, the honey bees remove natural resources that wild species depend on.

“Learning about [the honey industry’s] impact was a difficult one for me,” Mandich said. “The honey industry narrative was: ‘The more honey you sell, the more bees will get to work. By employing the bees you’re giving them a life.’ That narrative is one of the biggest lies that exists today. Making honey using honey bees is one of the biggest greenwashing that exists today.”

Is plant-based honey the future?

Despite its huge ethical costs, honey is big business across the world. The global honey market is worth $10 billion, and it’s projected to grow to $15 billion in the next few years. As well as being sold as a standalone product, honey is often found as an ingredient in foods, drinks, and cosmetics all over the world.

As we battle an ever-worsening climate crisis, Mandich’s company could provide a more viable alternative to honey made from bees. Founded in 2020, MeliBio delivers what it calls “the future of honey,” which is said to be “sustainable, delicious, nutritious, and animal-free.” The product has the same molecular composition as honey, and the company uses plant science and fermentation to mimic the process by which bees create it, but without use of the animal.

The company is based in Oakland, California. It initially created its product for B2B customers and food service. In March 2022, the company secured $5.7 million in a funding round to commercialize its first line of plant-based honey.

‘We can learn so much’

The general public often tends to think of insects like bees as lacking in sentience and personalities, which means many don’t think twice about exploiting them for personal gain. But Mandich is passionate about shutting these stereotypes down.

“We see them from afar, we are kind of scared of them, we see how they operate,” he said. “They move in a certain direction, do the dance, and interact. But once you get to see a bee very close, you start to realize there are different species of bees, and how maybe the same species of two bumble bees also look somewhat differently. We can learn so much from the bees, we just need to start looking at them closely.”

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: https://plantbasednews.org/news/economics/vegan-honey-creator-industry-greenwashing/

For more information, go to: https://siouxhoney.com/

Canada and Ontario investing up to $10 million to support sectors hit by extraordinary weather conditions.

Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

TORONTO – The governments of Canada and Ontario are investing up to $10 million through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership to help the grape growing and beekeeping sectors offset extraordinary costs caused by significant grapevine and bee colony losses due to extreme weather conditions in 2021-22.

Two new AgriRecovery initiatives will provide up to $5 million for eligible grape growers and up to $5 million for eligible commercial beekeepers.

“Resuming operations after disaster events can present extraordinary costs for beekeepers and grape growers,” said the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. “These initiatives will help to mitigate the impacts of these unanticipated occurrences so that these producers can recover and thrive.”

This July, eligible Ontario grape growers can apply for financial support under the Canada-Ontario Grapevine Winter Injury Initiative (2021-2022) to help recover from significant vine damage and loss. The damage resulted from a series of severe weather events including periods of drought, heavy rains and extreme cold, from summer 2021 to winter 2022. The initiative will provide funding for up to 70 per cent of the costs of replacing or renewing grapevines lost or damaged during the defined period.

“These new AgriRecovery initiatives are welcome news for both sectors and will help our grape growers and beekeepers recover from these extraordinary events that occurred beyond their control,” said Lisa Thompson, Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “This action is an example of our government’s commitment to ensuring our agriculture and agri-food sector has the tools to be successful, even in instances where industry depends on the elements to thrive.”

Supports for beekeepers will offset extraordinary costs caused by abnormal conditions during the 2021-22 winter, including severe weather and varroa mite damage. This July, eligible Ontario beekeepers can apply for financial support through the Canada-Ontario Overwinter Bee Colony Loss Replacement Initiative (2021-2022) to manage increased bee colony losses that occurred over the 2021-22 season. Eligible beekeepers will receive up to 70 per cent of the high cost of purchasing bee colonies to replace those impacted during the defined time period.

These initiatives will be delivered by Agricorp. The agency delivers business risk management programming in Ontario. AgriRecovery initiatives help offset extraordinary costs producers incur to recover from disasters outside of their control but which are necessary to mitigate the impacts and/or resume farming operations as quickly as possible.

“Beekeepers and grape growers are key contributors to Ontario’s thriving agriculture industry,” said Vance Badawey, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services and Member of Parliament for Niagara Centre. “AgriRecovery can help growers alleviate unforeseen costs out of their control, so they can continue to deliver high value to the sector.”

AgriRecovery is a federal-provincial-territorial disaster relief framework to help agricultural producers with the extraordinary costs associated with recovering from abnormal conditions or disaster situations. The initiatives are cost-shared on a 60:40 basis between the federal government and participating provinces or territories, as outlined under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP).

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Governments Helping Grape Growers and Beekeepers Strengthen Their Businesses | Ontario Newsroom