This past weekend, ATTTA attended the New Brunswick Beekeepers Association Annual General Meeting in Moncton. The meeting was well attended with interesting speakers and engaged attendees. Read on for an overview of this lovely event.
A Review of the New Brunswick Beekeepers Association AGM
The NBBA AGM began on Friday evening, March 10th,
to welcome members. Keynote speaker John Van Alten, from Dutchman’s Gold in Ontario, addressed the
group to tell the admirable story of his family business. Hearing the success
of their company is inspiring and optimistic for our Canadian industry! The
evening wrapped up with the opportunity to explore beekeeping equipment in a
trade show and socialize with the other beekeepers and meeting-goers.
Saturday was a full day of presentations and workshops. The
morning began with the business meeting of the NBBA, during which Fletcher Colpitts
was acknowledged for his significant contribution to the New Brunswick
beekeeping industry. Fletcher has been a major player in Atlantic Canadian
beekeeping and has recently retired from his longstanding role as chief apiary
inspector for the province. He will be missed in this official role but with
his heart in beekeeping, he assured the group he will not be hard to find.
After the business meeting, we heard more from John Van Alten. This time, presenting the queen rearing operation run by his wife Alison Van Alten through her Tuckamore Beekeeping Company. Alison is a leader in the Canadian queen rearing industry and it was enlightening to see how the company manages the production of so many queen honey bees, distributed as mated queens, queen cells, and nucleus colonies.
Following John were the provincial updates. Provincial
Apiarist Chris Maund provided an update on the 2022 NB beekeeping industry as
well as an overview of the new Bee Act legislation
which was enacted on March 1st. This act includes new reportable
pests and disease, including varroa mites demonstrating synthetic miticide
resistance. Under this act, new beekeepers must register their colonies within
ten days of acquisition and one hive per apiary must be labeled with
responsible owner’s beekeeper identification number. There are also updates to
the rules around honey bee importation. Be sure to follow all applicable
protocol prior to any interprovincial colony movement! Learn more on the Government
of NB Agriculture, Aquaculture, and Fisheries (DAAF) website.
Blueberry Crop Specialist, Mike Melanson, provided an
overview of the NB wild blueberry industry in 2022. It was a good year for wild
blueberry growth, in terms of rainfall, resulting in heavier than average
berries. Estimates from Stats Canada and the NB DAAF report that NB produced
between 65-78 million pounds of berries in the past season. The Honey Bee
Development Program is coming to an end after five successful years and
ultimately approved $582,889 towards expansion projects.
After Mike, Karen Thurlow, the new NB Apiary Inspector spoke
about what she observed in honey bee colonies this past season. Her bad news
was that varroa mite populations are growing and bringing with them harmful
honey bee viruses, including Deformed Wing Virus and Chronic Bee Paralysis. She
encourages beekeepers to monitor colonies regularly, especially after
treatments to ensure that they were successful! The good news is that there was
very little impact from small hive beetle in 2022 and no reports of American
Foulbrood Disease! In controlling pests and disease, Karen advises beekeepers
to be proactive and not reactive.
ATTTA provided an update to the group, as well, and led two
workshops on the ABCs of Beekeeping and What to Choose for Mite Control. We are
always pleased to participate in our provincial beekeeper association meetings for
the chance to engage with the community! Dr. Luc Boudreau provided insight into
the honey bee research at the University of Moncton, and the meeting closed
with warm words from the NBBA Secretary / Treasurer Brian Pond.
Thank you to the NBBA for another successful meeting! In
next week’s blog, we will review the NB Hort Congress!
Connecting with ATTTA Specialists