Mike Clark stands inside a nearly empty beehive, an apiary that has been raising bees since World War I has devastated a bee colony I hope you come back from a brutal winter across the country — and Manitoba the hardest.
"There are no plans to produce honey this year, although other vendors are currently producing to extract honey," Clark said.
"I hope they make it through the winter this year. If there is another big loss, it will be a nail in the coffin … our business is here.
In a typical August, the Clark Apiary in Wawanesa, Manitoba, about 200 kilometers west of Winnipeg, is bustling with bees producing honey. I was. This year, the space is quieter as the farm focuses on rebuilding degraded bee populations.
Clark says he wants to introduce imports of bees from the United States . Under current regulations, only certified queen bees can be imported from the U.S.
Apiaries work with banks to secure loans, and government stabilization programs are interest-free, according to Clark. Hoping to make it available in loan form.For commercial beekeepers.
"This is not our fault, so we're not really asking for handouts — this was an environmental issue — Backup required — that we will repay these loans — but then they will be available to farmers,” said Clarke.
According to owner Bob Podolski, Podolski Honey Farm is running about two weeks behind normal due to the late spring.
Apiaries began extracting honey in early August, but very little was found in hives.
"My best case scenario is that he can hit £1 million. Normally he can hit £750-850,000. This year he should be lucky if he hits £200,000." '' he said Podolski.
Podolski ships packages of bees from New Zealand and Australia (boxes specifically made to transport bees safely and securely, starting at about 3,000 per pound). sold in weights of 5,000). But he wants to see access to American bees.
When spring arrived, Podolsky estimated that he lost about 90% of the bees on the farm.
"I've seen 80%. I've seen 70% [in the past]. But there was replacement stock available. We didn't have it in stock," Podolski said.
"Well, after 47 years of bee milking, I don't know if I'll be here next year if I can't get replacement stock from the mainland United States."
The apiary purchased 50% of its current bee population, but it still had a third of its normal 3,200 bee population. Less than 1 of him is up and running. 3,500 hives.
"I cannot see the future of my sons," said Podolski. "If our government is willing to be proactive and want to stop this and help our industry, they have an opportunity.
"Our industry is tough right now.
2022 "Disastrous" for Beekeepers
The 2022 season "was a pretty devastating year for beekeepers" in Manitoba and across Canada, says a university associate of entomology. Professor Jason Gibbs said. Manitoba.
Bee losses are in the 40% range in parts of the country, he says, while Manitoba's figures remain at about 57%. 79}
Levels are struggling for a number of reasons, including the invasive bee parasite varroa mite, he says. said. "Beekeepers should maintain them regularly … [to] control their levels. Otherwise, they will suffer great losses."
But Gibbs believes that as long as the elements work together, beekeepers should be able to rebuild hives. He says most people think he should be able to recover from the loss within a year or he should be two years old.
Importing bees could be a possible solution for regrowth, but it is not without problems, says Gibbs. These include restrictions to prevent the introduction of pathogens and pests from outside Canada .
Honey harvest looks promising
Nonetheless, the 2022 honey harvest looks promising, says Ian Steppler, chairman of the Manitoba Beekeepers Association. says.
“I am very optimistic. Beekeepers are resilient. [We] know this is what we do. I know, we've had difficulties before, and now the price of honey is very high, so this is a plus," he said.
Manitoba has 200 commercial beekeepers of his, bringing in about $50 million to the state economy.
Last year, Manitoba beekeepers produced about 19 million pounds of honey, says Stapler .
Generally, replacement colonies are created with packages of bees from Australia, New Zealand and Chile, but due to problems with COVID-19 supply his chain Access is affected.
Access to these replacement packages can be difficult, and Manitoba is losing a large number of colonies, compounding the problem, says Stapler. says.
“Many beekeepers will run out of bees in their business. Unfortunately, some beekeepers have no bees. The idea was to look at other locations where we could access alternative inventory to bridge the gap," Stepler said.
He of the identified locations includes California, where he has the opportunity to obtain healthy bees as an alternative strain.
The Association also reached out to the Ministry of Agriculture to help beekeepers who were experiencing hardship and massive loss of bees.
The government is discussing import options
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is working with stakeholders to develop new science on honeybee health in Canada. Evidence sharing, America. They hope to decide by Sept. 5 whether another risk assessment is warranted for bee imports, a government spokesman said.
Canada's Agriculture and Agri-Food and Food Inspection Agency recently called on industry and government to seek solutions to key problems, including colony collapse and the effects of varois. Launched the Sustainability Working Group . Tick.
"Given the importance of crop pollination, healthy ecosystems and honey production, the health of domestic and native bee populations is vital to Canada's economy and environment." said the spokesperson. "Honeybee pollination is an important input for many important agricultural products."