Greenpeace China recently conducted a survey on vegetables sold in China's large cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The organization found many pesticide-ridden vegetables; some of them even carry cocktails of many highly poisonous pesticides.
In the Greenpeace China report titled, “Pesticide Cocktails: Have You Drunk Some Today?” the organization said that residents in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou almost drink a cup of pesticide cocktail from their fruits and veggies every day. Among the pesticides found, five of them cause cancer. The report also shows that 89 percent of the samples found in these three major cities have pesticide residues; 20 percent contain illegal and highly poisonous pesticides; 60 percent have residues of at least five kinds of pesticides.
A commodity inspection official in Guangdong province said that the abuse of pesticides increased in recent years. “Farmers did not know much about pesticides eight or ten years ago. In recent years, the farmers started to focus more on economic returns and the appearance of the produce and apply pesticides heavily. Now the farmers don’t eat what they grow, they eat vegetables that require very little pesticide.”
Gao Dawei, a former professor of South China University of Technology who specializes in food additive chemicals, said that residues of multiple pesticides are more harmful to the human body than a single pesticide. “It’s a ‘synergetic effect’ as we call it in chemistry. A single chemical may not have much effect but several of them mixed together, cause the chemical reactions to amplify the effect. Most ingested poisons in the human body have such a kind of synergetic effect and hence a cocktail of poisons may cause more serious damage than a single one.”
However, Beijing published an official survey recently that states that 96 percent of vegetables in the city conform to national standards. According to a report in Beijing Daily on April 3, the Produce Safety Inspection Division of the Standing Committee of the Beijing People’s Congress announced that 96.75 percent of vegetables in Beijing passed safety inspections in 2008.
Gao, a commodity inspection official in Guangdong said that official inspections most of the time are not reliable because of the complex interests between the producers and inspectors. Gao said that China has very detailed regulations on produce pesticide residue but in reality they are not enforced.
“The (Chinese) standards were developed from international standards and are even stricter. However, when pests became (pesticide) resistant, the farmers must apply higher dosages. Natural disasters from pests have been getting worse these years and farmers will not have crops if they don’t use a lot of pesticides,” said Gao.
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To deal with the residues, Chinese people often choose to prolong the time of soaking and washing their produce. However, some pesticides cannot be cleaned this way according to Gao. “Water can only remove general water-soluble pesticides on the surface. I know at least two kinds of pesticides that can not be washed away. One of them is the acidic pesticides. They react with the produce and bind tightly to it. That is why approved detergents for vegetable cleaning often contain a little alkali. The other kind can permeate into the cells of the produce and nothing can wash it away.”
This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping
Tuesday, 12 May 2009 Central Beekeepers Alliance Meeting Agricultural Research Centre, Fredericton, NB 7:30 p.m.
Want to learn more about Beekeeping?
Central Beekeepers meet on the second Tuesday of the month. Visitors and new beekeepers are always welcome! Most meetings include an educational session, group discussion, or hands-on demonstration for the benefit of beginning beekeepers in central New Brunswick.
The Agricultural Research Centre ("Experimental Farm") is located at 850 Lincoln Road, Fredericton, New Brunswick. Entry is from the parking lot at the back of the building, at door "B". For a map to the Agricultural Research Centre, see our Next Meeting page.
Burt’s Bees and NAPPC Award New Honey Bee Health Research Grants
SAN FRANCISCO, CA March 19, 2009 – The North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) has announced five grants totaling $40,000 for university-based scientists to study differing problems, each of which may be a key cause for the massive Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) among honey bees. The grants are part of NAPPC’s tri-national campaign to identify a cause for the disease now decimating bee populations vital to crop production, and to improve the health of honey bees through a variety of approaches.
“It is vital that we find avenues for successfully combating health threats to the honey bee, most importantly the devastating CCD problem, but also other deadly hazards such as Varroa mite infestation, growing nutritional challenges and environmental stressors that are very likely contributing factors in CCD,” said Laurie Davies Adams, Executive Director of the Pollinator Partnership, NAPPC’s managing organization. “Without millions of honey bees and myriad other threatened pollinators, crops and food sources that comprise every third bite of the food we eat and many of the products we use every day will be uncertain,” said John Replogle, President and C EO of Burt’s Bees.
Find out what's new at Mann Lake www.mannlakeltd.com/catchthebuzz/index.htumFunded by Burt’s Bees, the NAPPC grants support year-long research by scientists at WashingtonUniversity in St. Louis, the University of Florida, Texas A&M, OregonStateUniversity, and the University of Minnesota. The studies will cover food and fungal hazards; effects of pesticides; genetic influences; field testing for physiology and behavioral problems; and bee immune systems. Click Here for summaries for these studies as well as ongoing projects funded in 2008. Progress will be reported at the annual NAPPC International Summit to be held October 22-23, hosted this year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DCFor a Comprehensive listing of beekeeping events around the country and around the globe go to www.my.calendars.net/bee_culture/ list your event here send toTo info@BeeCulture.comThe Pollinator Partnership is unique in its commitment to dedicating every dollar donated for research to research. Donations are still needed and most welcome – gifts from $5 to $50,000 – and you can be certain that your funds specified for research will be spent solely for that purpose, to further the important cause of pollinator conservation/preservation. Click Here to learn how donations can be made to support honey bee research, or call 415-362-1137.Subscribe to the Apis newsletter www.apis.shorturl.comBurt’s Bees is an ongoing sponsor NAPPC’s “Honeybee Health Improvement Project” (HHIP). The HHIP task force is co-chaired by Danny Weaver, JD, former President of the American Beekeeping Federation, and Christina Grozinger, Ph.D., PennStateUniversity, and includes a number of respected researchers from across North America. NAPPC, a collaboration of over 130 environmental groups, government representatives, scientists, and corporate and private supporters from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, works to promote awareness and understanding of pollinators and to promote projects and initiatives to enhance pollinator conservation. This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeepingwww.BeeCulture.com
Rain continues to be on everyone’s mind again here in Gainesville, Florida. It rained a whole lot up north and the rivers here (Santa Fe and Suwanee) are bursting their banks, closing roads. Gainesville got some of this moisture, but still could use more. We also had a record-breaking cold snap a few days ago. Fortunately, folks were able to cover and preserve their incipient gardens and the bees took it all in stride.
I have received a few nice remarks about the Global Beekeeping Calendar initiative at http://my.calendars.net/bee_culture. The Apis Newsletter in conjunction with Bee Culture magazine continues this ambitious project is an attempt to collect all the events in the beekeeping world at one place. I would be interested in your reflections on this effort and keep forwarding to me entries as they arise.
Changes are occurring at The Speedy Bee, the Southeast’s premier beekeeping newspaper. It is going quarterly and will also have a World Wide Web page. I have developed a lens for this publication, linking some articles that I published a few years ago http://www.squidoo.com/Speedy_Bee.
Another survey by the Apiary Inspectors of America is being solicited by beekeepers. The results of this survey will be compiled and published so that everyone can see how bees are doing in the United States. These results, along with those from the past two years, will be used to secure research funding and assistance for Bee health. http://home.ezezine.com/1636/1636-2009.04.07.15.51.archive.html
Two interesting sites have grabbed my attention this month. For those who Speak Spanish, check out http://apiculturasinfronteras. It has an interview with my friendo from Mexico Enrique Carrilo who comment s on honey production in his country and the effects of adulteration there and the rest of the market. The latest on Chinese honey dumping is found at http://home.ezezine.com/1636/1636-2009.04.08.08.36.archive.html “Five American food product producers file a $1-billion lawsuit seeking class-action status against a handful of major insurance companies and the U.S. government for alleged damages caused by dumped Chinese food products. The five producers are Sioux Honey Association, Adee Honey Farms, Monterey Mushrooms Inc., The Garlic Co. and Beaucoup Crawfish of Eunice Inc.”
Finally, take a look at my collection of articles for this month at http://www.publish2.com/newsgroups/april-2009/. These include topics such as scientists having second thoughts about CCD and how bees and humans are similar when challenged with cocaine (see the alcohol example in this issue of Bee Culture), how bees brains work, citrus psyllid control, Wyman’s of Maine gives to bee research, bees at the White House and more.
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Gleanings from the April 2009 Bee Culture:
In response to Ann Harman’s article on categorizing beekeepers, Dennis Durham, Alexandria. VA writes that he thinks three categories are sufficient: amateurs, semi-professional and professional. Meanwhile Chris Sennotte, Luther, OK believes in simplicity, that “we are all beekeepers.” Felecia Smith, Fairgrove, MI enjoys each and every issue of Bee Culture. Melinda Nelson, Garden Grove, CA thinks it’s possible to manage feral and managed colonies of Africanized honey bees. Margot Boyer, Vashon Island , WA questions whether it’s correct to say that CCD is not caused by pesticides. Read editor Flottum’s reply.
Editor Flottum waxes about the need to keep to the basics and listen to what the bees hear. He also has some nice things to say about the joint South Carolina and North Carolina meetings just concluded in Rock Hill, SC.
New items for the beekeeper’s kit include the book of the Soil Science of America, Response of Crops to Limited Water: Understanding and Modeling Water Stress Effects on Plant Growth Processes, a new hive tool and top feeder from the Walter T. Kelley Company, a Varroa brush for K & W Apiary and the new Apitrack Producer Module. http://www.apitrack.com/. Also included are new labels from Brushy Mtn, snap together hive bodies from Mother Lode Products and the IBRA’s Journal of ApiProduct and ApiMedical Science.
Read the honey report revealing how both production and prices for honey are up. See why it’s a mixed picture for California next year.
Clarence Collison takes a closer look at Alarm Pheromone. Read why it’s a releaser pheromone and the importance of minimizing it for small hive beetle infestation.
Tom Seeley discusses water collection in honey bee colonies. Read how bees decide to collect water and what this means for allied foraging of nectar.
Larry Connor rants about silly rules concerning selling local honey and using soap as an insecticide. Don’t get him started on yellow jacket bees and “crimes against nature.”
Ross Conrad takes on spring reversal. Read what he says about delaying (not stopping) swarming is a possibility and when it should be considered.
Steve McDaniel takes on an easy non-chemical control of Varroa. It’s simple, he contends, to manage drone brood and at the same time provide needed protein to wild birds. A real win-win situation.
Jim Tew, just off his surgery, writes about package bees. Read why he thinks some should look into becoming package bee producers in the future.
Walt Wright mentions that even the so-called “experts” don’t often take into consideration bee biology. Read where heat goes in a colony and how it is expelled. Then note that grease and feed patties get in the way and how the beekeeper might indeed help the bees avoid the problems this causes.
Jennifer Berry visits the Georgia Sea Turtle Center http://www.georgiaseaturtlecenter.org/ and finds some new uses for honey. Read what all this has to do with bunnies and tortoises.
Bob Darrell describes how to produce cut comb honey the easy way. It’s a good way to add value to honey. Read how one might get $6 to $9 a pound for the sweet.
Allen Hayes finds an idea in an old text book on producing a scale hive with a bathroom scale at its base. Read how the weight can be read directly using a periscope. This is just the ticket for the Nasa Project I reported on in the past http://honeybeenet.gsfc.nasa.gov/.
Fred Hembree believes every good beekeeper needs a notebook. Read why he says good records make good beekeepers.
Ann Harman attempts to determine where a picnic with the bees might go wrong. Read the ins and outs of having a gaggle of beekeepers over for an open-hive demonstration.
Michael R. Harvey analyses Kerkhoff Hives and the advantages of a two-queen set up. Read why there is a renaissance in this kind of hive and how they have been updated for Varroa mite control. http://rusticelementbees.com/.
Charles Abramson and colleagues from a number of academic organizations, including France, Turkey and Oklahoma look for similarities in how humans and honey bees tolerate alcohol. Read why bees are ideal subjects for this kind of study and why this is similar to the cocaine example above.
In all the news that fits, see a listing of Californians honored at the latest convention and a report on Jerry Hayes winning the coveted AAPA Award of Excellence http://www.masterbeekeeper.org/aapa/index.htm. See also a listing for http://ruralbounty.com/, with which you can find all kinds of local produce including honey.
Alan Harman’s Global Wrap up lists the UK’s plan to protect bees, Brazil’s record honey year, Costa Rica’s forgotten pollinators, Fiji flooding, and bee thefts in Japan. Read what folks think of food safety in the U.S.
Ed Colby in the Bottom Board says beware of idle chatter and “never assume.” Read his explanations and examples.
AGRICULURE SECRETARY VILSACK AND FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA HIGHLIGHT HEALTHY EATING
WhiteHouseGarden to Receive USDA-Developed Honey Bees
WASHINGTON, April 9, 2009 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack joined First Lady Michelle Obama and a group of 5th graders on the South Lawn of the White House today to talk about healthy eating, the availability of locally grown fruits and vegetables, and bees.
“Growing your own fruits and vegetables is one of the best ways to have healthy food,” Vilsack said. “Working in a garden is a great way to stay physically active and maintain a healthy body. And the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is helping schools make sure that every student in America has a healthy and nutritious lunch to eat at school.”
This July, USDA will be providing two types of parasite-resistant honey bees developed by USDA scientists to pollinate the plants in the new White House garden this summer. Both of these bees are rapidly gaining in popularity with bee keepers.
Honey bees enhance any garden, because they increase the yields of plants that require pollination, they produce honey, and they are one of Nature's most fascinating creatures to observe. Unfortunately, parasitic mites cause serious health problems for most varieties of honey bees, and many beekeepers must use pesticides to combat the mites in the hives. But the USDA-developed bees are mite-resistant, offering a more natural, organic alternative for the White House garden.Find out what’s new at Mann Lakewww.mannlakeltd.com/catchthebuzz/index.htmlHoney bees are crucial to American agriculture, adding some $15 billion in value in the nation's crops, particularly specialty crops such as almonds and other nuts, berries, fruits, and vegetables. In California, the almond crop alone uses 1.3 million colonies of bees, approximately one half of all honey bees in the United States, and this need is projected to grow to 1.5 million colonies by 2010.
Scientists with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), USDA's principal intramural scientific research agency, developed the two types of mite-resistant honey bees. One type is highly resistant to the parasitic mite Varroa destructor, commonly known as the varroa mite. The bees have a trait called "varroa-sensitive hygiene" which prompts the worker bees to detect and remove infested bees from the nest, eliminating the need for chemical help to control the mites.For a comprehensive listing of beekeeping events worldwide go to www.my.calendar.net/bee_culture/The second type of mite-resistant honey bees is based on a strain of honey bees from Russia which are naturally resistant not only to varroa mites, but also to tracheal mites, which infest the breathing tubes of the bees. These bees are also highly tolerant of cold weather and require less artificial feeding than typical honey bees.
The Russian bees were brought to the United States by Thomas Rinderer, research leader at ARS' Honey Bee Breeding, Genetics and Physiology Research Unit at Baton Rouge, La., where studies have been under way on the bees since the mid-1990s. Rinderer and other ARS scientists will collaborate with White House staff on installation of the USDA bees in the White House garden.Subscribe to the Apis newsletter www.apis.shorturl.comFor the past eight years, breeder queens of the Russian-derived and varroa-sensitive hygienic bees have been released to the beekeeping industry. In 2008, a breeders' group called the Russian Honeybee Breeders Association, Inc., was formed to supply the Russian-derived queens throughout the U.S. beekeeping industry, and demand is outstripping supply.
Both types of mite-resistant USDA bees are good pollinators and easy to keep alive because of their hardiness, thus helping ensure the success of the new White House garden.
This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping www.BeeCulture.com
Class Action Against Bond Insurers for a Billion Dollars because of Dumped Chinese Food.
Special to Bee Culture by Alan Harman
Five American food product producers file a $1-billion lawsuit seeking class-action status against a handful of major insurance companies and the U.S. government for alleged damages caused by dumped Chinese food products.
The five producers are Sioux Honey Association, Adee Honey Farms, Monterey Mushrooms Inc., The Garlic Co. and Beaucoup Crawfish of Eunice Inc.
The Dow Jones news service reports the complaint alleges the insurers’ negligent issuance of customs surety bonds, and the subsequent refusal to pay under the bonds, allowed the sale of “huge amounts of competing food imports” from China at below cost, or “dumped” prices.
Find out what’s new at Mann Lakewww.mannlakeltd.com/catchthebuzz/index.html “The dumping of these imports forced the domestic producers to significantly lower the prices for their competing products, causing the producers to lose hundreds of millions of dollars,” lawyer Michael Coursey of Kelly Drye & Warren LLP tells the new service. The company is representing the producers.
Customs bonds, required on all commercial imports entering the U.S., are contracts used for guaranteeing a specific obligation will be fulfilled between customs and an importer for any given import transaction.
The complaint alleges that for eight years, the insurers negligently issued hundreds of customs surety bonds that guaranteed the payment of any dumping duties the government might determine were owed by U.S. importers for the specified Chinese goods.
The lawsuit also claims the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Commerce Department failed to enforce four antidumping orders issued to protect domestic producers from dumped Chinese imports.
Subscribe to Apis Newsletter www.apis.shorturl.com The defendants include Hartford Financial Services Group Inc., Kingsway Financial Services Inc. unit Lincoln General Insurance Co., Swiss Reinsurance Co. Washington International Insurance Co. and American International Group Inc. unit American Home Assurance. This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping www.BeeCulture.com
Apiary Inspectors take annual survey, again. But Hurry.
What happened to the APHIS survey that was supposed to be funded? Or is this it?Maybe this year they won’t miss the colonies buried in the snow up north, eh?
The Apiary Inspectors of America (AIA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have asked that we fill out the following questionnaire. The information you provide will be entered into a spreadsheet and will not be attached to your name or address in any way. In addition to this e-mail survey, you may be contacted by phone and asked the same questions. Please provide answers to both if you are asked to do so – but mention to the phone interviewer that you have already answered the questions via email.
Please complete the survey below. The survey will be conducted between March 30 and April 17 2009. If possible pass along this message to your association members, other beekeepers you know or put on your web page or in your newsletter. The more information the better.
1. In what state(s) and county(s) do you keep your hives? If you keep hives in more than one state or county, please answer questions 2-9 separately by location.
2. How many hives did you have alive in September 2008?
3. How many hives are alive now (March/April 2009)?
4. How many splits, increases, and/or colonies did you make/buy since September 2008?
5. What percentage of loss, over this time period, would you consider acceptable?
6. What percentage of your hives that died had no dead bees in the hive or in the apiary?
7. To what do you attribute the cause of death for the hives that died?
8. What percentage of your hives did you send to CA for almond pollination?
9. How many times, on average, did you move your colonies last year?
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