Subject: Canadian Beekeeping

From: [email-masked] (Andy Nachbaur)
Date: Thu, 14 Mar 1996 06:02:00 GMT

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 Latest News in Apiculture
 on The Beekeepers Home Page Canada

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      During February and March, many hives of bees in North America are
      patiently awaiting the arrival of spring.
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    Updated March 2, 1996

     * The Canadian government, mostly at the urging of beekeepers in
       Ontario and Quebec, has again decided to ban the importation of
       USA bees into all parts of Canada. The February 5, 1996,
       announcement extends this ban into its tenth year. Without high
       quality bees and queens from the southern US states, western
       Canadian beekeepers continue to face severe difficulties. Bees do
       not always winter well on the prairies and replacements for winter
       losses are always made at the expense of honey production. Since
       the ban was invoked in the 1980s, honey production in western
       Canada fell to 60% of its former levels.

     * What are Canadian beekeepers doing to replace their winter losses?
       Bees are being brought in from Australia at a price of $100
       Canadian per package, delivery included. The three pound packages
       with queens will arrive in early April. Beekeepers willing to sell
       single-story hives in Western Canada are asking $200 each.

     * The latest news from the eastern USA, where varroa mites are
       common, is that honey production from domestic hives has been at
       record levels. Many beekeepers have had several consecutive record
       crop seasons. Beekeepers are starting to attribute this to the
       reduction of feral colonies (wild swarms living in trees). Feral
       colonies have been killed by varroa mites. (Bee Culture Magazine,
       Feb. 1996) The reduction of wild colonies has resulted in less
       competition for nectar sources, leaving more nectar in the flowers
       for managed hives to acquire. Properly treated domestic colonies
       do not suffer from the varroa pest, while wild bees may perish.
       Whether this scenerio is based on fact, or whether the past few
       years of good production is due to other causes, can not be
       scientifically determined.

     * In Canada, some forward contracts for bulk honey in 55 gallon
       barrels have been set at $1.20 C per pound. A beekeeper in
       Saskatchewan says one million pounds of honey left Saskatchewan in
       a one-lot shipment at a price of $1.18 per pound in January. Very
       little honey remains in North American producer's hands. Small
       quantities are selling retail for about $2.00 per pound, US. Here
       in Calgary, Canada, stores retail 500 grams (just over a pound)
       for about $3.50 to $4.50 (this is about $2.75 US currency per
       pound). The producer should be receiving from 95c - to- $1.25 per
       pound, Canadian money, in wholesale lots.

     * Coming up soon: The Seventh International Symposium on Pollination
       in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada from June 23rd to the 28th.
       Lethbridge is located in the dry southern prairies of western
       Canada. Irrigiation systems and the hot, sunny summers make this a
       diversified crop area. Government research centres have focussed
       on a variety of projects, including irrigation, crop
       diversification, and pollination. Lethbridge is a scenic but
       modest sized city, within an hour or so of the Rockies and a
       couple of hours from Calgary. Make your plans early for this
       conference! For more information, call K.W. Richards at the
       research centre. 403-327-4561; fax 403-382-3156.

     * Students and potential students of entomology should be aware that
       several scholarships are available to help their studies. Our
       congratulations to Hannah Fraser, M. Sc. student at the University
       of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, winner of the American Association of
       Professional Apiculturalist $1000 research award. Her work may
       lead to a better understanding and control of the wax moth which
       invades weak hives and stored bee equipment!

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