Subject: Candian Beekeeping Info

From: [email-masked] (Andy Nachbaur)
Date: Sat, 31 Aug 1996 07:45:00 GMT

As we swelter in the dry late summer heat, our brown season in
California, there are places to the North that bees can be kept and do
well and they are more then likely preparing for another long winter.

To put it in perspective Canada has about the same number of bee
hives and beekeepers as California with about twice the Honey production
and a very long cold winter when beekeepers have nothing to do but
reproduce, go to bee meeting, and vacation in warmer climes.<G>

                         ttul OLd Drone

All about Canada's honey industry...
     _________________________________________________________________

  ... at a glance
     * Canada's 13,000 beekeepers maintain more than 500,000 bee hives.
     * Canadian beekeepers have one of the highest honey yields in the
       world as a result of a northern climate with long days, vast
       expanses of clover, alfalfa and canola, and by using sophisticated
       management practices. Average production in Canada is 130 pounds
       (60 kg) per hive, twice the world average.
     * Canadian honey production was 72 million pounds (33,000 tonnes) in
       1993. Of that, 21 million pounds (9,500 tonnes) was exported,
       mostly to the U.S., but also to Great Britain, Germany, Japan and
       many other countries. On average, Canada's exports of honey range
       from 20 to 30 million pounds (9,000 to 14,000 tonnes) annually.
     * Canada is the fifth largest producer of honey in the world behind
       China, the U.S., Mexico and Argentina. It is produced in all 10
       provinces and territories and is valued at $50 million in farm
       gate receipts. Alberta is the largest producing province providing
       approximately 27 million pounds (12.3 million kg), followed by
       Saskatchewan at 17 million pounds (7.7 million kg) and Manitoba at
       13.5 million pounds (6.1 million kg).
     _________________________________________________________________

  ... in detail
     * Beekeeping is the oldest form of agriculture. For thousands of
       years, honey was the primary sweetener throughout the world. The
       first records of hives can be seen in Egyptian tombs. European
       settlers brought domestic bee hives from Europe into Canada.
     * Bees play an important role in pollination of fruits and
       vegetables. Many fruits and vegetables require insects to move
       pollen from plant to plant. Fruit and vegetable producers rent
       beehives from beekeepers in the spring to make sure this
       pollination takes place. It has been estimated that honeybee
       pollination contributes up to $500 million annually to agriculture
       production.
     * It would take more than 500 worker bees a full season to gather
       one pound of honey. For that pound, they would have to tap about
       two million flowers and fly more than 55,000 miles.
     * Individual honeybees make 25 trips a day, visiting more than 1,000
       flowers. That probably started the expression "busy as a bee".
     * Packaged honey is pasteurized and filtered, doesn't need any
       preservatives and has a shelf life of two years.
     * Non-food use products include:
          + beeswax for candles and in household products such as
            polishes;
          + pollen, which is rich in protein and used as a diet
            supplement;
          + propolis, which is becoming widely known and accepted as an
            ingredient in cosmetics and lip balms, as well as a tonic;
          + royal jelly, a special feed produced by worker bees and fed
            to the queen bee, used in skin creams and lotions, and
            gaining a reputation as having a beneficial effect on aging
            skin;
          + honey and its by-products are increasingly used in health and
            beauty products such as skin creams and cleansers.
     * At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's (AAFC) research station at
       Beaverlodge, Alberta, scientists are studying the host-parasite
       relationships of several bee diseases to make integrated pest
       management decisions, evaluating products for the control of
       tracheal mites and selecting lines or strains of bees showing
       tolerance to varroa mites. Other research stations in Nova Scotia,
       Quebec and British Columbia are conducting pollination studies.
     * Universities, colleges and provincial departments of agriculture
       also make important contributions to both beekeeping and
       pollination research.
     * The beekeeping industry is served by provincial apiculturists in
       each province who are responsible for registration of beekeepers,
       bee health, management practices and any other issues affecting
       beekeepers.
     * Canadian honey is recognized to be among the best-produced
       worldwide. Vast expanses of canola, clover and alfalfa provide
       foraging for bees and results in a mild, white honey that is sold
       at premium prices to more than 30 countries.
     * The outlook for honey production in Canada is promising. Higher
       world prices are adding stability to the industry, and large
       increases in canola production will add to the foraging area for
       bees.
     * The Canadian honeybee industry is almost totally self-sufficient
       in bees, but imports under permit about 8,000 packages and 150,000
       queen bees each year from Hawaii, New Zealand and Australia. The
       Canadian border has been closed to honeybee imports from the
       continental U.S. since 1987, when a pest called the varroa
       parasitic mite was first detected. Some provinces also regulate
       transport of honeybees to prevent the spread of the mite.
     * Canada is also monitoring the Africanized honeybee found in
       Central and South America, and now entering the U.S. This breed is
       known to be very aggressive and potentially harmful for beekeepers
       and the public.
     * AAFC's Food Production and Inspection Branch monitors the safety
       and quality of honey and ensures producers meet federal standards.
       When honey is shipped to other countries, our inspectors certify
       the product meets the requirements of the importing country.
     * AAFC regulates production and packing of domestic and exported
       honey, through the Honey Regulations of the Canadian Agricultural
       Products Act.
     * Producers and packagers must conform to very specific regulations
       about labels they put on their products. AAFC inspectors check to
       see that labels are honest and accurate.
     _________________________________________________________________

  ... want more information?

   For more detailed information, contact:

   Gary Hergert
   Market and Industry Services Branch
   Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
   2200 Walkley Road
   Ottawa, Ontario
   K1A OC5

   Telephone: (613) 957-7078
   Facsimile: (613) 957-9055
   ************************************************************
   Ripped off the "Beekeeper's Home Page" one of those that all
   beekeeper should visit.

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 þ QMPro 1.53 þ "Where there is honey, there are beekeepers"