I'm puzzled as the legal importation of bees into UK from Southern Italy has been going on for years. Why now?
They come from regions that obviously aren't infected with SHB. The BBKA seems to imply by default that they are infested...Perhaps they thought that a non EU UK meant no more bee imports....
I think it's a very bad thing if (in the unlikely event) of the BBKA getting legal importation banned as it will drive it underground and into black market territory.
This was already happening with packages of Spanish black bees which were being illegally imported by "white van men" and sold as Amm's due to their dark black colour. Iberian bees are notoriously savage but this was never given a second thought.
The fact that the petition is aimed at depriving a small company of it's income/livelihood seems to have been brushed under the carpet.
I also see that the BBKA will no longer accept adverts from the company importing packages of bees, yet will still take adverts from importers of queens.
I would also take issue with the claimed 20K loss in USA whgere I quote "Despite the fact that small hive beetles may cause considerable damage in bee colonies in the U.S., they increasingly are considered a secondary pest of bee colonies, much like the greater (Galleria mellonella Linnaeus) and lesser (Achroia grisella Fabricius) wax moths (Ellis and Hepburn 2006). Colonies hosting other bee diseases/pests appear more likely to suffer small hive beetle damage than healthy ones.".
Circulation: All Area and Branch Secretaries.
You may be aware that there is an intention to circumvent the restrictions on the movement of bees from the EU and in particular Italy, by moving the bees via Northern Ireland into the UK.
Some of the Italian bees are known to be infested with the Small Hive Beetle (SHB). If this is imported into the United Kingdom the risk to our bee population would be catastrophic and it would be almost impossible to eradicate it from our shores.
Within two years of its discovery in America, at least 20,000 colonies were destroyed, costing millions of dollars to the economy. A similar impact on beekeeping in this country would be devastating.
It would appear that the intention is to import the bees into Northern Ireland, hive the bees there and allow them to fly freely, then package them to come into the UK mainland. The risk of spread due to this action would be horrendous both in Northern Ireland and here on the mainland.
There is a petition from the BBKA, arranged by Anne Rowberry our Chair, currently on the internet to ask for support requesting the Government to prevent this import. Can I ask that you do support this petition but also raise awareness, by whatever means you can, to help persuade the Government to prevent the import of bees from Italy, through the Northern Ireland route.
Here is the link: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/577603
In the course of events for the BBKA News, we take advertisements from organisations who pay for the privilege, which helps with the cost of operating it and ultimately keeps the costs down for our members.
We are very careful who we receive adverts from, and one such advertiser was an existing customer, so their advert was accepted. We have subsequently discovered that it was the same organisation trying to import bees from Southern Italy where the SHB is prevalent. We were unable to pull the advert for the April edition of the BBKA News as it was already at the printers, but all other adverts have now been refused.
Keep safe
Margaret Wilson, President