SHB Reported in the Lower Fraser Valley

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Allen Dick
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SHB Reported in the Lower Fraser Valley

Unread post by Allen Dick »

AFAIK this is far from the first time SHB has been seen in the Fraser Valley, but this is a public revelation.

http://www.vancouversun.com/touch/story ... d=11325231

This demonstrates how quixotic and hypocritical our Canadian embargo on US package bees is. Bees (and presumably SHB) can and do fly freely across the border in eight of ten provinces.

Heck, least time I was in the area, one could simply walk across.
Allen Dick, RR#1 Swalwell, Alberta, Canada T0M 1Y0
51° 33'39.64"N 113°18'52.45"W
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/Allen%27s%20Beehives.kmz
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Allen Dick
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Joined: February 25th, 2003, 10:09 pm
Location: Swalwell, Alberta
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Re: SHB Reported in the Lower Fraser Valley

Unread post by Allen Dick »

This is from an email conversation with friend and I post it here for comment.
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...SHB have been found in the Fraser Valley last week.  The bureaucrats are all excited and pleased with themselves. Medhat must be happy about it.
He is trying to kill those that move from out of province.  First inspection in your out of province location... if you pass then a second inspection in a quarantine Alberta zone (this one being 2 weeks before delivery to canola).
<snip>
This has the potential to bankrupt us. Amazing because every year my crew collectively gets better and so do our bees. This fear mongering is making it harder to sell bees... actually honey prices are doing a fine job of that. 4 in 4 out with the TFW (Temporary Foreign Worker) program... possible Amitraz resistance out there and it looks like we can be in a world of hurt pretty soon and pretty fast.

I think top guys are following Medhat's lead. Nobody wants this... either regulation or SHB. Better spend our time educating ourselves best we can and carry on with these devastating honey prices.
<snip>
99 cents to 1.25... but nobody is buying. We did all this God Damned CBIQT bs, and cfia approved honey houses, new barrels, so we could distinguish ourselves as a superior product and now there has been a collapse of the market. Not a level, nor fair playing field.

In the last few years 8% rise in total worldwide colonies matching with a 61% increase in total exports... yeah sure. The trend is lower production in the last decade or two. But somehow China keeps producing highly suspicious honey and exporting it. I recently read Ron Phipps report where internally Chinese consumers are disappointed with their honey supply. In it he says that China consumes far far more honey than it produces. I guess it is like Manuka where more of it is sold than produced. Go figure. Virtually half of the honey on their shelves is adulterated. Of the adulterated honey it is 70-100% adulterated. I guess the penalties to cheat cannot be that high because those that cheat really don't fool around.

It is like their royal jelly. If you take the time to sit down and think about it and put numbers to it, their pricing makes no sense. It costs more in bees to produce than what they are selling it for. Yet there is never a shortage of it... again because of adulteration. The Chinese are so proud that they control the market.
Allen Dick, RR#1 Swalwell, Alberta, Canada T0M 1Y0
51° 33'39.64"N 113°18'52.45"W
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/Allen%27s%20Beehives.kmz
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