The first stage of a plan for controlling Varroa bee mite is expected to swing into gear this week.
All beekeepers with infested apiaries would be offered free assisted treatment, said project coordinator Dr Matthew Stone, of the Biosecurity Authority's exotic disease response arm.
He said the Government would fund the programme in a coordinated fashion so that all hives in a given area were treated at once.
This would reduce the opportunity for re-infestation.
Treatment would not be compulsory, and consent would be obtained from beekeepers first, he said.
An interim programme was next in the plan and the cabinet had asked for recommendations by September 15.
A control options paper had been in circulation for a month and this described ways of reducing risks in the North Island and maintaining the South Island as Varroa mite-free.
Dr Stone said the industry had been fortunate over winter as it was a period when hives mostly stayed put.
But the time was approaching when hives would be moved for pollination and honey flow, and there was doubt whether present movement controls were sustainable over summer.
"We know hive movement is a big risk to the spread of the Varroa mite so we have to balance these two conflicting requirements," he said.
The industry would be consulted on the issues, leading up to the report to the cabinet.
This began at the National Beekeepers' Association conference in Gisborne last week and would continue at meetings of regional branches.
Another chance for consultation would take place at a meeting of the association in Wellington when regional representatives came together to provide feedback to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
Recommendations would be presented to the cabinet for funding.
Dr Stone said longer-term control was a matter to work through under the Biosecurity Act, which had provision for pest management.
Meanwhile, a British manufacturer of bee remedies, Dr Max Watkins, said new materials for controlling Varroa mite were in the pipeline, offering beekeepers hope if the products could be registered for use in New Zealand.
He said a slow-release gel called thymol could be used to control Trachael and Varroa mites, plus chalk brood and some of the other diseases of honey bees.
Next year might see the launch of another synthetic version of a natural product that stopped Varroa breeding without affecting the bees, said Dr Watkins, a director in Vita (Europe).
"Work on this product has taken eight years of research."
The company has the world rights to bee medicines Apistan (except for Canada), Apitol, Folbex and Apiguard.
All its research and development is done under contract.
Agriculture Minister Jim Sutton said organic Varroa control measures were available overseas and these would be fast-tracked through the registration process when introduced here.
- NZPA
Varroa mite control plans kick into action this week
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