Studies Won't Yield Results in Time for Beekeepers -- Or Almonds

Although it’s all quiet on the Colony Collapse Disorder Front in the media headlines for the moment, it’s not been quite as quiet behind the scenes. Starting as early as last July, scientists from several colleges and universities were planning on how to approach the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) problem from as many fronts as possible without overlapping each other’s work, and yet get the best work done with the least amount of money. Some $4 million is already on the table, ready to be given in competitive grants to some of these apicultural researchers, while more is in the wings waiting for the farm bill to settle down and get moving.

The current approach includes a study of the virus side of this problem; the varroa mite side to this problem; the other diseases that have been identified as part of this problem; the environmental side of moving bees and stressing bee hives side of this problem; the nutritional side; and, what I think is by far the most important, and necessary item ... getting all this information into the hands of the beekeepers who can use it to save bees this fall and winter.

Alas, the money won’t be available until later ... much later. The proposals aren’t even due until November, and the finalists won’t be identified until February next year. This is NASCAR fast for most research programs but dead-snail slow for beekeepers who want their bees alive for the almond bloom in February. And who knows on the Farm Bill funding ... when, or even if it will come through. The folks who have the majority in congress seem to have problems getting some things done on time, and other things done at all so waiting for them could be fatal ... unless that’s all there is. And that’s all there is.

In the middle of October there’s a meeting in Modesto California where the Almond people, the honey bee people, the regulatory people and the science people will be at to discuss how many bees will be available, if they will be available, when they will be available, and what shape they will be in ... when almonds begin to bloom. That’s when we’ll all know more ... and The Beekeeper will be right there finding out. Stay tuned.