Beekeepers battling 'perfect storm' of threats to their future

Australian beekeepers are warning they face their biggest test in decades as the full impact of the varroa mite hits home.
The parasite mite that attacks and feeds on honey bees was first detected in NSW three years ago, but has since spread to Queensland and other jurisdictions.
President of the NSW Apiarists Association Matthew Skinner says dealing with the impact of the mite has seen time on the job and costs blow out for beekeepers.


Beekeepers and the honey industry are facing a perfect storm of challenges ahead of spring. (NBN News)
He was speaking as tens of thousands of bee hives are shifted to western NSW for the start of annual almond pollination season
"The workload for many of us -the monitoring and putting treatments in - has tripled," he said.
Beekeepers must also spend about $50 per hive annually on synthetically treating varroa mite.

Despite the full weight of government biosecurity measures being deployed, the parasite has proven hard to contain. 
Because of the incestuous nature of varroa, a solitary bee carrying a single mite can lead to a mass outbreak.

The varroa destructor has been devastating to bee colonies around the world. (USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab)
The first egg laid is always male, and subsequent eggs are female. Once the eggs hatch, the male mates with the females.
On top of the varroa mite, beekeepers are also battling a shortage of skilled labour, higher chemical costs and gaining access to public land for their hives.
Added to them has been this year's flooding in northern NSW which provided ideal conditions for the invasive small hive beetle that attacks bee populations, already weakened by varroa.
Skinner says they all present a "perfect storm" of challenges that make the next three to five years crucial for the beekeeping and honey industry.
Any major decline in the population of Australian bees would have a major impact on the country's food security, some experts warn.
Larvae from the small hive beetle (Brendan Esposito/SMH) (Nine)
AgriFutures, a federal government research corporation, has estimated 65 per cent of horticultural and agricultural crops are dependent on honey bees for pollination.
That figure is equivalent to one in every three mouthfuls of food Australian consume.
Beekeepers are really starting to feel the impact of varroa mite and the costs it is having across the industry