I have been aware of the honey bee problem ever since there was the killer bee invasion and the worry was the European honey bee would be overtaken by the more agressive African bee. Then there was the bee mite destroying colonies.
One of the big problems besides all the environmental issues is that commercial bee keepers travel huge distances with their hives to pollinate crops. Instead of keep large local hives, agriculture depends on these traveling beekeepers who very quickly spread disease to local and other traveiling hives. Bee hives have suffered from several diseases in the last two decades. I think if we treated this as an insect public health issues, and kept hives local and quarantined any diseased hives, the problem might not have gotten this bad.
Rent the film, Eulee’s Gold, (a terrific film with Peter Fonda) which touches on this issue besides the main plot.
From what I’m reading this is on a whole new level. They have no idea why the bees are not returning to the hives. Very unusual behavior for bees. If they were sick they would find dead bees near the hives, but they aren’t.
The theory that I find most interesting is that it’s because of cell phone interference. If this is the case then a quarantine wouldn’t have any effect. That it’s springing up and multiple places around the globe at the same time (Europe, Brazil, USA) also lends credence to the theory.
We don’t have to worry, with Jean Schmidt assigned to the Committee on Agricultural, I am sure she will put this at the top of her list. I mean, after doing away with the family farms and investing in mega-farms. But she will probably deny it is a problem, like global warming is not a reality. Anything George says is what’s beest for America.
I know this is a whole new thing but maybe related. I wonder if the bees in the small operations that don’t travel have the same problem. Does it happen where there aren’t many cell phone towers? Are the bee colonies so weakened by all the previous viruses and parasites that they just can’t overcome a new stress? Is is just honey bees or is it other species of bees that live in colonies? Is it where they pollinate genetically engineered crops or every where?
Our whole food production systems needs to be overhauled. The way mega farms produce vegetables now contaminates them with bacteria. Huge meat processing plants do the same thing. We need more localized and controlled food products so at least an outbreak would be smaller and more containable. We know how to properly handle food but the laws and enforcement are being gutted. Smart, energy efficient farming is not given the breaks that the mega farms are getting.
The Amish in Lancaster Co., PA have very profitable farms because they don’t spend money on gas and commercial fertilizer. I read articles about farmers going more green especially with dairy cattle, ie, letting them graze in the fields and not giving them antibiotics because they are fed corn and are confined to a barn. They end up costing less and are a lot healthier.
I have been aware of the honey bee problem ever since there was the killer bee invasion and the worry was the European honey bee would be overtaken by the more agressive African bee. Then there was the bee mite destroying colonies.
One of the big problems besides all the environmental issues is that commercial bee keepers travel huge distances with their hives to pollinate crops. Instead of keep large local hives, agriculture depends on these traveling beekeepers who very quickly spread disease to local and other traveiling hives. Bee hives have suffered from several diseases in the last two decades. I think if we treated this as an insect public health issues, and kept hives local and quarantined any diseased hives, the problem might not have gotten this bad.
Rent the film, Eulee’s Gold, (a terrific film with Peter Fonda) which touches on this issue besides the main plot.
From what I’m reading this is on a whole new level. They have no idea why the bees are not returning to the hives. Very unusual behavior for bees. If they were sick they would find dead bees near the hives, but they aren’t.
The theory that I find most interesting is that it’s because of cell phone interference. If this is the case then a quarantine wouldn’t have any effect. That it’s springing up and multiple places around the globe at the same time (Europe, Brazil, USA) also lends credence to the theory.
We don’t have to worry, with Jean Schmidt assigned to the Committee on Agricultural, I am sure she will put this at the top of her list. I mean, after doing away with the family farms and investing in mega-farms. But she will probably deny it is a problem, like global warming is not a reality. Anything George says is what’s beest for America.
I know this is a whole new thing but maybe related. I wonder if the bees in the small operations that don’t travel have the same problem. Does it happen where there aren’t many cell phone towers? Are the bee colonies so weakened by all the previous viruses and parasites that they just can’t overcome a new stress? Is is just honey bees or is it other species of bees that live in colonies? Is it where they pollinate genetically engineered crops or every where?
Our whole food production systems needs to be overhauled. The way mega farms produce vegetables now contaminates them with bacteria. Huge meat processing plants do the same thing. We need more localized and controlled food products so at least an outbreak would be smaller and more containable. We know how to properly handle food but the laws and enforcement are being gutted. Smart, energy efficient farming is not given the breaks that the mega farms are getting.
The Amish in Lancaster Co., PA have very profitable farms because they don’t spend money on gas and commercial fertilizer. I read articles about farmers going more green especially with dairy cattle, ie, letting them graze in the fields and not giving them antibiotics because they are fed corn and are confined to a barn. They end up costing less and are a lot healthier.