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NEW ZEALAND BEEKEEPER, JULY 2017
beekeeping in the region. More information at http://www.sada.org.ar/asi-se-celebro-el- dia-mundia-de-la-abeja/ On 15 May, the Argentinian Beekeepers Society (SADA) launched its ‘Beehive Protectors’ campaign, aimed at the general public with the objective of raising awareness about the problems that bees are experiencing and their impact on biodiversity in our lifetime. More information at http:// www.sada.org.ar/protegeunacolmena/ Executive Committee activities In the past year Apimondia has introduced its newsletter put together by a small volunteer group of the Executive Committee. It has been difficult to gain reports from all regions and Scientific Presidents and a small group of us have worked on the development of reporting templates to try to improve the quality of information shared amongst Apimondia members. A highlight of the past year was attending the ApiQuality Symposium in Rome in May 2017, where I spent three fabulous days delving very deeply into the quality aspects of honey and other hive products such as pollen, propolis, bee bread, and bee venom. It was fascinating to hear speakers using these products for health benefits both in human and veterinary medicine. In Asia, work has commenced on the development of a Tropical Honey standard but we are yet to receive a draft of the standard. Apimondia has received three requests for Symposium Status for Pollination Symposiums for 2018. It appears the issue of pollination is topical globally. I presented background and relevant information from Australia for Apimondia consideration of support for the Australian Bee Congress, with its pollination focus to be endorsed as a Pollination Symposium along with requests from Mexico and Ethiopia. We expect to have decisions shortly on the outcomes of these requests. The topic of neonicotinoid bans is currently being reconsidered by the European Parliament on 14 June, so we can expect further discussion around this topic in relation to its impact on bee health. Planning is underway for Apimondia 2019 in Montreal, Canada, and the Executive Committee has received bids from Denmark, Russia, Serbia and Slovenia to host Apimondia 2021. The bids are reviewed and then voted on in Istanbul.
Honey adulteration The Apimondia Working Group on Honey Adulteration has prepared a report on the topic of Honey Adulteration. [Editor’s note: Apiculture New Zealand will circulate this report to its members soon via its weekly online update.] This document is designed to progress the objectives of the working group, which are to break the silence around honey adulteration globally and raise awareness of the problem of honey adulteration. The document is being used in Europe and can be used elsewhere to assist in improving understanding of the complexity of the issue globally. The working group continues to work slowly on the topic but anyone expecting the issue to be solved quickly is overly optimistic. The solutions lie in strong traceability systems that work alongside honey testing, and the education of consumers to ask informed questions and understand the supply chain from which their honey is derived. Sadly, the work of this working group is likely to always be relevant, as we see global food fraud rewards for fraudsters outstripping rewards from the global trade in illegal weapons and heroin. A PricewaterhouseCoopers report “estimates food fraud is worth $52 billion globally each year. The illegal trade in firearms is worth an estimated $8.5 billion a year and heroin $30 billion. No wonder food fraud is now among the high rollers of crime” (Sampson, 2017). The food industry has reponded with the development of TACCP (Threat Assessment at Critical Control Points) and VACCP (Vulnerability Assessment at Critical Control Points) being introduced into global food safety programs. In addition, European supermarkets are beginning to include nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) honey testing as part of their verification expectations from honey suppliers. Combined, all efforts make the traders of low- priced or adulterated honey more nervous, which can only be a good thing for the future of beekeeping globally. Mānuka honey On the topic of mānuka honey produced both in New Zealand and Australia, I believe that there would be benefit from joint discussion and a more collaborative approach to work more together to protect and develop the image of mānuka globally. Both countries have much to be gained from jointly meeting the challenges of an increasingly demanding market and a clever continued...
Apimondia President Phillip McCabe at ApiQuality, Rome, 2017. Photo: Jodie Goldsworthy.
Oceania region We are pleased to have received application from Fiji for membership to Apimondia. We welcome our island cousins to the Apimondia network and look forward to building strong ties with this country and supporting where we can to help develop apiculture in Fiji. World Bee Day Much Apimondia effort has been undertaken promoting bees with work focusing on having World Bee Day on 20 May endorsed globally. Apimondia President Mr Phillip McCabe from Ireland has attended many countries supporting beekeeping globally and participated in Brussels Bee Week in May, which showcased a magnificent beekeeping display in front of Parliament. Phillip has also spent considerable effort supporting the development of beekeeping in the Middle East, amongst many other areas of the world. It is impossible to cover all global activities but in South America, Honey Week was celebrated from 14–20 May with a campaign organised by the Ministry of Agro Industry of Argentina. More information at http://www. agroindustria.gob.ar/sumalemielatuvida/ The Latin American Beekeeping Federation (FILAP) held a demonstration of beekeepers in their cities to show the presence of
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