National Honey Board Accepting Bee Research Proposals

Firestone, Colo., Aug. 14, 2012 – The National Honey Board (NHB) is requesting proposals for research dealing with honey bee colony production. The goal of this research is to help producers maintain colony health while assuring the maintenance of honey quality.  Areas of interest are: control of Varroa destructor, Acarapis woodi, Nosema Ceranae, and small hive beetle; the investigation into the …

The National Honey Board Clarifies Confusion Over Pollen and Ultrafiltration

Firestone, Colo. – August 7, 2012 – Honey has been in the news recently, covering topics from its source to its authenticity. The National Honey Board (NHB), a federal research and promotion board with United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversight, wants to clarify any misconceptions. The NHB utilized industry, culinary and educational resources to produce “The Story of Honey,” …

Can Behavior Be Controlled By Genes? The Case of Honeybee Work Assignments

Research shows several micro-RNAs -- noncoding RNAs that control gene expression -- are down-regulated in nurse bees   What worker bees do depends on how old they are. A worker a few days old will become a nurse bee that devotes herself to feeding larvae (brood), secreting beeswax to seal the cells that contain brood and attending to the queen. After about a …

The EPA Denies Petition Seeking Emergency Suspension of Clothianidin and Releases Petition for Public Review

The EPA is denying a petition requesting emergency suspension of clothianidin based on imminent hazard. The agency will, however, be taking comment  from the public for 60 days on the petition’s request for cancellation of clothianidin. The agency received the petition from a group of beekeepers, Beyond Pesticides, Pesticide Action Network of North America and others on March 20, 2012. The petition …

Enhanced Royal Jelly Produces Jumbo Queen Bee Larvae

Scientists have discovered a way to make worker bees produce an enhanced version of royal jelly (RJ) – the super-nutritious substance that dictates whether larvae become workers or queens, and that is also renowned as a health supplement for people. Their study, which found that the super RJ that makes queen bee larvae grow 2-3 times larger than normal, appears …

April Ohio Bee Die-off Was Not Due to Pesticides, Study Claims

by Colleen Scherer, Managing Editor, Ag Professional A mass die-off of honey bees in April in Ohio was not due to pesticides, according to the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Although the manner in which the bees died suggested that they had been poisoned by pesticides, the results did not agree. The department tested samples of dead bees and ran the results against …