Vermont's honeybee hives healthy
Toolbox
By Peter Hirschfeld Vermont Press Bureau - Published: April 5, 2009
MONTPELIER – Experts say a mysterious honeybee affliction decimating hives nationwide has yet to affect Vermont beekeepers. And industry officials told lawmakers that concern over Colony Collapse Disorder has actually spawned a resurgence in apiculture here.
Though a number of hobby-level beekeepers initially suspected CCD in several 2008 die-offs, state inspections later attributed the deaths to varroa mites, weak queens or simple inexperience.
"In Vermont I think we're doing generally OK," Steve Parise, an apiculturist at the Agency of Agriculture, told the Senate Committee on Agriculture on Thursday.
Vermont has a relatively modest honey industry. About 1,700 registered beekeepers care for more than 10,000 hives. In 2008, according to a study by Parise, they produced three-quarters of a million pounds of honey valued at just under $1 million. The revenue comprises only a small sliver of Vermont's agriculture business, but the bees' value extends beyond the honey they produce, according to Bill Mares, president of the Vermont Beekeepers Association. The state's fruit and vegetable crops, Mares said, rely heavily on the presence of the tiny pollinators.
"It's important – just ask the apple guys," Mares said. "If we lose that bee industry, it's a real problem."
Vermont's bee industry, though, doesn't appear to be going anywhere. The state has seen the number of registered bee keepers grow by about 300 in the last five years. Mares said many of the new ranks have come on since Colony Collapse Disorder first began making headlines in 2006.
"To compare this year with five years ago or 10 years ago is night and day," Mares said. "CCD has had a huge beneficial effect in arousing interest around the country. It has alerted people to the importance of bees, not just on an industrial level but a local level as well."
Scientists have yet to pinpoint the cause of the disorder, which has killed millions of the nation's honeybees. Whether the blame falls on pesticides, viruses or other potential culprits, the phenomenon has for the most part spared Northeastern states.
"We've certainly had a surge over the last several years in terms of hobbyists," said Parise, referring to beekeepers with 10 or fewer hives. "Because of the exposure bees are getting nationwide, people feel they need to do something."
The Vermont Beekeepers Association is enjoying record membership numbers, according to Mares, who said the organization hosts half a dozen conferences annually. Mares told lawmakers that given the state's dour revenue situation, he understands it's unlikely the industry will see any new state investments in apiculture in Fiscal Year 2010. But he pleaded with them to at least maintain the apilculturist position held by Parise (which has not been identified for elimination).
"Don't take his job away," Mares said. "We really need him."
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