A LOCAL beekeeper says shoppers can help in simple ways to support the beekeeping industry with news the varroa mite has been identified in the Lockyer Valley.
Biotechnologist and local beekeeper Brandan Holt said there was a real fear the mite could have a devastating impact on local bee numbers as well as the livelihoods of beekeepers and farmers and the agricultural industry.
“Please buy 100 percent Australian-made honey – check the label for 100 percent produced in Australia or buy direct from a local beekeeper if you can,” Mr Holt said.
“Lobby your MPs for better support to beekeepers and farmers.
“Be mindful when spraying pesticides and insecticides in your garden.
“Make water available for all of our pollinators in your gardens – and plant bee and pollinator friendly gardens or make a bee hotel for our solitary bees.”
Mr Holt, 29, grew up in regional NSW and has nine hives in the Ipswich and Brisbane areas – three in Springfield and six in Karana Downs.
He said colleagues and close friends in the beekeeping community were concerned about the survival of their hives, which would now require constant monitoring for infestation.
The varroa mite rapidly collapses honeybee colonies if untreated.
He said around 300 bees per hive, per monitoring cycle, are killed to determine infestation levels for treatment (amounting to 3,600 bees per year just to monitor the hive).
Treatments are chemical based and there is the risk of the mite developing resistance, which has happened overseas.
“Most chemical treatments will affect honey quality and safety; certain treatments mean honey must be discarded afterwards,” Mr Holt said.
“Ultimately, the mite can never be eradicated from a hive once it has entered, and it cannot be prevented from entering a hive.
“This will mean that monitoring and treatment will be expensive and labour intensive for beekeepers, meaning over time the price of honey and the price of beekeepers providing pollinating services to farmers will increase, flowing on to consumers.
“We will lose hives, and food insecurity will rise.
“The honeybee is critical to Australia’s agriculture.
“Without the honeybee, Australia’s farmers would not be able to produce the agricultural crops and livestock that we depend upon every day to feed us.”
According to AgriFutures Australia, the honeybee industry is worth more than $14 billion to Australia’s economy annually. Commercial beekeepers in Australia produce 37,000 tonnes of honey annually.
Approximately 35 percent of crops in Australia need bees for pollination, up to 75 percent of crops benefit from bee pollination – livestock feed crops require bees for pollination.
The varroa destructor mite was first detected in Australia at the Port of Newcastle in June 2022 and detected in the Lockyer Valley, on March 1, this year.
