Hi!

I would like to focus our attention on this important question comparing our information and opinions about this theme and hopefully do what we can in order to solve this problem: bees are dying all over the world.

As you may know bees are very important in the ecosystem, because these pollinator bugs are the bearing column of the biological chain and from these little insects depend also our life: Einstein prophetically said that without bees the human race would disappear in few years.

Environmentalists and climatologists are working on this issue with beekeepers and all the heads of all the countries of the world are trying to collaborate with farmers as well, as it seems that pesticide are the major cause of this murrain.

In the newspaper of 10th March I read that in California the situation is improving, but in that same day I saw a debate on TV on this matter here in Italy and it seems that the alarm is still high, so what we can do about it?

I’m not a farmer and I try to buy biological food as possible, but for example I’m vegetarian, not vegan yet, eating honey is not eco-friendly, is it?!?

Thanks!

I didnt know the bees were dying out all over the world!
Thank you for inform me.

I think there can be ecofriendly honey...it depends on how the farmer/industry runs it, and not have those big industries.
I know a family who have thier own bees, and I think thats ok. Both for the bees and for the enviroment.

Or am I wrong? I dont know....inform me

Have you done research into this at all? I do the taxes for three seperate beekeepers and they have all said the same thing: Scientists have absolutely no idea why bees are dying off, and pesticide has been completely ruled out as a culprit. Disease is the most likely reason. Honey is natural, and bees are a requirement for all that "eco-friendly" bullshit people buy. So actually, all honey is "eco-friendly."

Sorry, I'm not sure to understand your position about this topic.
What kind of deseas are bees supposed to have?
I read that entomologists are studing the problem deeply and there are also some videos that prove that some legal pesticide make the insect die in 2 minutes time (http://firenze.repubblica.it/multimedia/home/4468701?ref=rephpsp4). Environmentalists and climatologists are not aggressive towards farmers, they are trying to co-operate simply through information 'cause this pesticides can be simply replaced with innocuos others and beekeepers are, or should be, interested in this problem too, for obvious reasons, i mean also commercially.
As far as the honey consuption is concerned I was just asking myself if eating honey could be compared to drink milk and eat its products and whether eating sugar was more ecological like drinking soya milk.

Thats what I also thought!

So you mean the bees have a deadly disease, that they infect in each other? Well, diseasers come and go to everyone and everything,right. I dont know so much about the honey industry, but what I know is it eco-friendly (when it comes to the bees), but then the other comes. How eco-friendly is some companys when it comes to freight....maybe thats of the topic. (sorry my english)

Interesting topic sweethearts, even if I cannot honestly understand the way is taking this debate.
I cannot absolutely define myself as an estimator of the human race, and the indirect implications on the extinction of bees are quite indifferent to me if not for a primary side for myself: the animal rights.
With regard to the fact that it could be eco-friendly eating honey (I understand perfectly what you mean Marzya), I think the problem does not lay, 'cause for me the rearing of bees has no any second order leading to the suffering of them, which indeed are kept in a controlled and favorable environment. I don't think that they're forced in any way and indeed, in this sense, it helps the maintaining, even if indirect, of their species. I think however their growth, and subsequent exploitation of their honey as production and nutrition, they fall into a kind of "symbiotic" relationship which benefits both species (human and insect).
Regarding the causes of their gradual disappearance I heard that insecticides and pesticides have been partly cleared too, not being the primary cause that seems still to remain a mystery. I admit however that I've never examined the subject.

Well, i don't know about eco-friendly Honey is taken out of hives and replaced with sugar syrup. So basically bees are left on diet.

My grandfather was beekeeper. He said that bees and beekeeper have a special bond, he said that bees recognize him and don't attack, when he is taking their honey away.



I highly doubt there is a bee-friendly pesticide. Pesticides are lethal for any form of insects and fishes too.

There are a number of pesticides which are classified as biological control and many of these are not harmful to bees. I spent some months a couple of years ago populating a database with this information.

The lab I work for is also home to the National Bee Unit (in the UK) and does a huge amount of research into bee health.

Yes, exactly!
Really good job, kynd!




Wow! Kynd, you're just the person I was looking for! And tell me, do the bees suffer for the honey that we take away from them?

Thanks for your help!

Thank you

Unfortunately, the bee unit is not the part I work in, so I really don't have any in depth knowledge of apiculture. Have a trawl around the page I linked to in my last post and see if that helps answer any questions you have

Yes, I followed your link, but unfortunately I didn't find the answer I was searching for, so I tried to read "Vegan/Vegetarian" topic and I went on Yahoo! Answer where I found something interesting about the consuption of honey!? Thanks anyway Kynd!

As far as the natural causes for the murrain of bees are concerned I found this article of BBC News about butterflies in UK that are dying for the copious rains (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7988232.stm), but I don't think this could be the case of bees since the alarm for them is world-wide!?

Oops! I've just watched "An inconvenient truth" by Al Gore and the increase of the rainfall doesn't concern only UK, but all the world and it's caused by the global worming, so these "natural causes" are due to human race once again!?!

Oh please, "An Inconvenient Truth" is a propaganda piece, and little more. There is some hard science, but the rest is speculatory science at best. Take it with a grain of salt.

It could be!?
So, tell us "The real truth"!
You seem to be very confident about your scientific knowledge!?!
Illuminate our poor minds!!!

this reminds me of the bee movie.

ive heard this bee thing i think a year ago. people from my city dont believe that bees are dying out. in fact there are more bees here today than before. idk. this is in our city. i pretty much dont know whats happening to the bees in another city. < XP > hehehe

I like your signature, maldita!

Who Killed The Honey Bee

This programme was on the BBC earlier this week - it is very interesting, and even includes some shots of where I work When it says 'National Bee Unit' - that's where it's based, the whole complex you see there is not just the NBU but the main site for the Food and Environment Research Agency

Thx Kynd, but unfortunately I can't see it!?!

And what's this? A rabbeet?!?

Had that programme in mind when reading this topic.
Try and watch it if possible.
It points out that amongst others the bees are suffering from an mite infestation which leads to Sudden Hive Death, but also due to the modern crop production of only a few high yield crops the Bees are actually starving also.
Basically Einstein pointed out if we lose the bees we have about three to four yrs before we all starve to death as they pollenate over 96% of all commercial grown crops. In a nutshell We have too small a food base and too many people.
Sorry but first to go will be the vegetarians.
One of my neighbours keeps hives so I buy my Honey from him, I make sure my garden has plenty of plants that the bees like, so in a way I'm supportng my local producers and the only air miles is by the bees.

So with all the information we have about the bee's dying, how can we help? Is there anyone we can donate to?

You could start beekeeping. Or if you have a garden or even a windowbox, grow plants that bees like.

bump for good information to be read by all

Yea, i live right next to an apple orchard owned by my best friend, and they bought last year like 100,000 bees or something....idk if they've bought more, but now they have almost twice that

Well it's good to hear they have more I hear so many stories of people opening up the hive in spring and they're all dead, and they can't face starting again - don't really blame them in a way.

I really do not like bee's. They are definitely one of my fears. However I do agree that they need to be saved as long as they are not near me

don't know much about the bee but i know where i am we have two types , the honey bee and the native bee.

as i can see both are everywhere here and in abundance .
we really don't use pesticides here or so my neighbours tell me as we don't need to the eco system here works pretty well and being in the australian countryside we don't really need to we pretty much let nature do what needs to be done .

DNA clue to honeybee deaths

This was on BBC website the other day.