Now that the busy beekeeping season is winding down, there
are many opportunities for beekeepers to attend industry meetings. Groups, like provincial beekeeping
associations, have workshops and technical sessions which support ongoing professional
development. There are many
opportunities for producers to further understand best practices and gain
knowledge on new information around their industry. These meetings also provide networking and
social opportunities for both new and established participants in the
industry. As these meetings occur over
the next few months, attendance is encouraged and always of benefit. An excellent example of an industry meeting,
the Nova Scotia Wild Blueberry Conference, has just occurred. In this week’s blog you will find some of the
highlights of the meeting.
Nova Scotia Wild Blueberry Conference
The annual
conference and AGM of the Wild Blueberry Producers Association of Nova Scotia
(WBPANS) was a great success in Truro last week (Nov 17 – 18). Many blueberry producers, in addition to
beekeepers, took advantage of the opportunity to meet in person which resulted
in a healthy turnout for the event. Two
packed days of informative talks and opportunities for networking brought in people
from all three Maritime provinces as well as the state of Maine.
The first
day started with a warm welcome to all those who joined in person, as well as
those accessing the meeting virtually.
The WBPANS outgoing president, Peter Swinkels, gave an excellent,
concise report of the past year and an optimistic view to the future of the
blueberry sector. A more detailed report
on the activities of WBPANS was given by Peter Burgess which reaffirmed our
appreciation of Peter and his team for the tremendous volume of work achieved
by the Association on behalf of the industry.
The first
technical report of the meeting was provided by Gilbert Lavoie as a commodity market
overview of wild blueberries. Mr.
Lavoie, as founding partner of Forest Lavoie Conseil, told the group that Europe
represents the largest market for the 100 million pounds of blueberries leaving
the Maritime region. The global market,
213 million pounds combined wild and cultivated blueberries, is increasing
production, especially in China.
Appreciation of the quality of wild vs cultivated varieties was proven by
this report as evidenced by the premium price paid for wild blueberries. Although a generally optimistic economic
report, Mr. Lavoie did cautiously suggest a potential downturn in price moving
forward.
The
importance of pollination services and honey bees was a theme throughout the
conference. Two sessions were dedicated
to this specifically on the first day. A
pollination panel, with a group of experienced industry experts, discussed
aspects of preparing for and managing pollination services. An afternoon break-out session, chaired by
Mario Swinkels, provided a chance for commercial beekeepers to discuss
challenges and opportunities in that sector.
Day two of
the conference focused on research highlights. Dr. David Percival and Joel
Langdon from Dalhousie University talked about developments in new remote
sensing technologies for identifying and subsequently eliminating field weeds,
aimed to save producers time and improve accuracy in weed management. Dr.
Travis Esau also discussed results of a new technology in weed management, an
electronic weed Zapper which kills target vegetation. PhD candidate, Janelle
MacKeil, provided an overview of her project which aims to contribute to the
management of the blueberry fruit fly. In his presentation on herbicide
application, Dr. Scott White emphasized his recommendation to always use
Chikara together with Ignite for fescue management.
Perennia and
ATTTA were pleased to present at the conference, as well! Wild Blueberry
Specialist Hugh Lyu and Agriculture Technology Specialist Thomas Harrington
presented updates on the Weather Station Assistance Program, which had
excellent uptake by wild blueberry producers. These weather stations are located
throughout Nova Scotia and are already contributing to relevant research for
wild blueberry producers. For example, Hugh discussed how the data is
contributing to a better understanding of growing degree days for the wild
blueberry bud F2 stage, which has important implications for management
decisions. ATTTA was able to give preliminary results from our research
projects over the summer! We will continue to share our results in our blog as
these develop!
Overall, the
event was a productive two days highlighting the significance of the blueberry
industry to the Maritime region of Canada. Thank you to WBPANS for hosting and
to all who attended!
Connecting with ATTTA Specialists