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  1. Article ; Online: Winter mortality, diversification, and self-sufficiency affect honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony profit in Canada: a model of commercial Alberta beekeepers.

    Bixby, Miriam / Scarlett, Rod / Hoover, Shelley E

    Journal of economic entomology

    2023  Volume 116, Issue 3, Page(s) 686–696

    Abstract: Canadian beekeepers faced widespread levels of high honey bee colony mortality over the winter of 2021/2022, with an average winter loss of 45%. To understand the economic impact of winter colony mortality in Canada and the beekeeping management ... ...

    Abstract Canadian beekeepers faced widespread levels of high honey bee colony mortality over the winter of 2021/2022, with an average winter loss of 45%. To understand the economic impact of winter colony mortality in Canada and the beekeeping management strategies used to mitigate these losses, we develop a profit model of commercial beekeeping operations in Alberta, Canada. Our model shows that for operations engaging in commercial pollination as well as honey production (compared to honey production alone), per colony profit is higher and operations are better able to withstand fluctuations in exogenous variables such as prices and environmental factors affecting productivity including winter mortality rates. The results also suggest that beekeeping operations that replace winter colony losses with splits instead of package bees accrue higher per colony profit than those importing packages to replace losses. Further, operations that produce their own queens to use in their replacement splits, accrue even higher profit. Our results demonstrate that the profitability of beekeeping operations is dependent on several factors including winter mortality rates, colony replacement strategies, and the diversification of revenue sources. Beekeepers who are not as susceptible to price and risk fluctuations in international markets and imported bee risks accrue more consistently positive profits.
    MeSH term(s) Bees ; Animals ; Hymenoptera ; Alberta ; Honey ; Seasons ; Beekeeping
    Language English
    Publishing date 2023-04-11
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
    ZDB-ID 3031-4
    ISSN 1938-291X ; 0022-0493
    ISSN (online) 1938-291X
    ISSN 0022-0493
    DOI 10.1093/jee/toad056
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  2. Article ; Online: British Columbia beekeeping revenues and costs: survey data and profit modeling.

    Bixby, Miriam / Cunningham, Morgan / Foster, Leonard / Higo, Heather / Morfin, Nuria

    Journal of insect science (Online)

    2023  Volume 23, Issue 6

    Abstract: British Columbia beekeepers, like many beekeepers around the world, are currently facing declines in honey bee health and high overwinter colony losses. To better understand the economics and the cycle of yearly colony loss and replacement of this ... ...

    Abstract British Columbia beekeepers, like many beekeepers around the world, are currently facing declines in honey bee health and high overwinter colony losses. To better understand the economics and the cycle of yearly colony loss and replacement of this critical agricultural industry, we collected and analyzed survey data on beekeeping costs and returns. Forty British Columbia beekeepers provided details about revenue sources, variable costs, capital costs, and investments. Ten surveyed beekeepers managed between 1 and 9 colonies, 10 managed between 10 and 39 colonies, 9 managed between 40 and 100 colonies, 5 managed between 101 and 299 colonies, 3 managed between 300 and 699 colonies, and 3 managed 700 colonies or more. The data was used to calculate beekeeping profit and to parameterize a model that explores the economic impact of colony loss rates and replacement strategies. Survey results show that when the data is aggregated, revenues exceed costs for beekeeping operations in British Columbia with a per colony profit of $56.92 or $0.87 per pound of honey produced. Surveyed operations with fewer than 100 colonies have negative profits, while operations with 100-299 colonies have positive profits. Surveyed operations in the Cariboo, North Coast, and Okanagan regions have the highest profits while surveyed operations in the Peace region have the lowest profits. Profit modeling shows that replacing losses with packages generates lower profit than replacing losses with split colonies. Our modeling shows that operations that diversify their revenue to include bee sales and commercial pollination accrue higher profits and can withstand higher winter loss rates.
    MeSH term(s) Bees ; Animals ; Beekeeping ; British Columbia ; Agriculture ; Honey ; Pollination
    Language English
    Publishing date 2023-12-07
    Publishing country United States
    Document type Journal Article
    ZDB-ID 2049098-7
    ISSN 1536-2442 ; 1536-2442
    ISSN (online) 1536-2442
    ISSN 1536-2442
    DOI 10.1093/jisesa/iead070
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  3. Article: The Impacts of Covid-19 on Beekeeping Operations in Canada and the United States

    Bixby, Miriam / Payne, Alexandria / Polinsky, Matthew / Guarna, Marta / Rangel, Juliana

    American bee journal

    2022  Volume 162, Issue 2, Page(s) 221

    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 820372-6
    ISSN 0002-7626
    Database Current Contents Nutrition, Environment, Agriculture

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  4. Article ; Online: Honey bee stressor networks are complex and dependent on crop and region.

    French, Sarah K / Pepinelli, Mateus / Conflitti, Ida M / Jamieson, Aidan / Higo, Heather / Common, Julia / Walsh, Elizabeth M / Bixby, Miriam / Guarna, M Marta / Pernal, Stephen F / Hoover, Shelley E / Currie, Robert W / Giovenazzo, Pierre / Guzman-Novoa, Ernesto / Borges, Daniel / Foster, Leonard J / Zayed, Amro

    Current biology : CB

    2024  

    Abstract: Honey bees play a major role in crop pollination but have experienced declining health throughout most of the globe. Despite decades of research on key honey bee stressors (e.g., parasitic Varroa destructor mites and viruses), researchers cannot fully ... ...

    Abstract Honey bees play a major role in crop pollination but have experienced declining health throughout most of the globe. Despite decades of research on key honey bee stressors (e.g., parasitic Varroa destructor mites and viruses), researchers cannot fully explain or predict colony mortality, potentially because it is caused by exposure to multiple interacting stressors in the field. Understanding which honey bee stressors co-occur and have the potential to interact is therefore of profound importance. Here, we used the emerging field of systems theory to characterize the stressor networks found in honey bee colonies after they were placed in fields containing economically valuable crops across Canada. Honey bee stressor networks were often highly complex, with hundreds of potential interactions between stressors. Their placement in crops for the pollination season generally exposed colonies to more complex stressor networks, with an average of 23 stressors and 307 interactions. We discovered that the most influential stressors in a network-those that substantively impacted network architecture-are not currently addressed by beekeepers. Finally, the stressor networks showed substantial divergence among crop systems from different regions, which is consistent with the knowledge that some crops (e.g., highbush blueberry) are traditionally riskier to honey bees than others. Our approach sheds light on the stressor networks that honey bees encounter in the field and underscores the importance of considering interactions among stressors. Clearly, addressing and managing these issues will require solutions that are tailored to specific crops and regions and their associated stressor networks.
    Language English
    Publishing date 2024-04-15
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article
    ZDB-ID 1071731-6
    ISSN 1879-0445 ; 0960-9822
    ISSN (online) 1879-0445
    ISSN 0960-9822
    DOI 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.039
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  5. Article: Impacts of COVID-19 on Canadian Beekeeping: Survey Results and a Profitability Analysis

    Bixby, Miriam E. F. / Polinsky, Matthew / Scarlett, Rod / Higo, Heather / Common, Julia / Hoover, Shelley E. / Foster, Leonard J. / Zayed, Amro / Cunningham, Morgan / Guarna, M. Marta

    Journal of economic entomology. 2021 Sept. 21, v. 114, no. 6

    2021  

    Abstract: To gauge the impact of COVID-19 on the Canadian beekeeping sector, we conducted a survey of over 200 beekeepers in the fall of 2020. Our survey results show Canadian beekeepers faced two major challenges: 1) disrupted importation of honey bees ( ... ...

    Abstract To gauge the impact of COVID-19 on the Canadian beekeeping sector, we conducted a survey of over 200 beekeepers in the fall of 2020. Our survey results show Canadian beekeepers faced two major challenges: 1) disrupted importation of honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) (queen and bulk bees) that maintain populations; and 2) disrupted arrival of temporary foreign workers (TFWs). Disruptions in the arrival of bees and labor resulted in fewer colonies and less colony management, culminating in higher costs and lower productivity. Using the survey data, we develop a profitability analysis to estimate the impact of these disruptions on colony profit. Our results suggest that a disruption in either foreign worker or bee arrival allows beekeepers to compensate and while colony profits are lower, they remain positive. When both honey bee and foreign workers arrivals are disrupted for a beekeeper, even when the beekeeper experiences less significant colony health and cost impacts, a colony with a single pollination contract is no longer profitable, and a colony with two pollination contracts has significantly reduced profitability. As COVID-19 disruptions from 2020 and into 2021 become more significant to long-term colony health and more costly to a beekeeping operation, economic losses could threaten the industry's viability as well as the sustainability of pollination-dependent crop sectors across the country.The economic and agricultural impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic have exposed a vulnerability within Canada's beekeeping industry stemming from its dependency on imported labor and bees.Travel disruptions and border closures pose an ongoing threat to Canadian agriculture and apiculture in 2021 and highlight the need for Canada's beekeeping industry to strengthen domestic supply chains to minimize future risks.
    Keywords Apidae ; COVID-19 infection ; apiculture ; beekeepers ; entomology ; honey ; industry ; labor ; pollination ; profitability ; surveys ; viability ; Canada
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2021-0921
    Size p. 2245-2254.
    Publishing place Entomological Society of America
    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 3031-4
    ISSN 0022-0493
    ISSN 0022-0493
    DOI 10.1093/jee/toab180
    Database NAL-Catalogue (AGRICOLA)

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  6. Article: Honey Bee Queen Production: Canadian Costing Case Study and Profitability Analysis

    Bixby, Miriam / Hoover, Shelley E / McCallum, Robyn / Ibrahim, Abdullah / Ovinge, Lynae / Olmstead, Sawyer / Pernal, Stephen F / Zayed, Amro / Foster, Leonard J / Guarna, M. Marta

    Journal of economic entomology. 2020 June 2, v. 113, no. 4

    2020  

    Abstract: The decline in managed honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony health worldwide has had a significant impact on the beekeeping industry. To mitigate colony losses, beekeepers in Canada and around the world introduce queens into replacement colonies; ... ...

    Abstract The decline in managed honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony health worldwide has had a significant impact on the beekeeping industry. To mitigate colony losses, beekeepers in Canada and around the world introduce queens into replacement colonies; however, Canada's short queen rearing season has historically limited the production of early season queens. As a result, Canadian beekeepers rely on the importation of foreign bees, particularly queens from warmer climates. Importing a large proportion of (often mal-adapted) queens each year creates a dependency on foreign bee sources, putting beekeeping, and pollination sectors at risk in the event of border closures, transportation issues, and other restrictions as is currently happening due to the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic. Although traditional Canadian queen production is unable to fully meet early season demand, increasing domestic queen production to meet mid- and later season demand would reduce Canada's dependency. As well, on-going studies exploring the potential for overwintering queens in Canada may offer a strategy to have early season domestic queens available. Increasing the local supply of queens could provide Canadian beekeepers, farmers, and consumers with a greater level of agricultural stability and food security. Our study is the first rigorous analysis of the economic feasibility of queen production. We present the costs of queen production for three Canadian operations over two years. Our results show that it can be profitable for a beekeeping operation in Canada to produce queen cells and mated queens and could be one viable strategy to increase the sustainability of the beekeeping industry.
    Keywords Apidae ; COVID-19 infection ; apiculture ; case studies ; economic feasibility ; entomology ; food security ; industry ; overwintering ; pollination ; profitability ; queen honey bees ; risk ; transportation ; Canada
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2020-0602
    Size p. 1618-1627.
    Publishing place Entomological Society of America
    Document type Article
    Note NAL-AP-2-clean
    ZDB-ID 3031-4
    ISSN 0022-0493
    ISSN 0022-0493
    DOI 10.1093/jee/toaa102
    Database NAL-Catalogue (AGRICOLA)

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  7. Article ; Online: Impacts of COVID-19 on Canadian Beekeeping: Survey Results and a Profitability Analysis.

    Bixby, Miriam E F / Polinsky, Matthew / Scarlett, Rod / Higo, Heather / Common, Julia / Hoover, Shelley E / Foster, Leonard J / Zayed, Amro / Cunningham, Morgan / Guarna, M Marta

    Journal of economic entomology

    2021  Volume 114, Issue 6, Page(s) 2245–2254

    Abstract: To gauge the impact of COVID-19 on the Canadian beekeeping sector, we conducted a survey of over 200 beekeepers in the fall of 2020. Our survey results show Canadian beekeepers faced two major challenges: 1) disrupted importation of honey bees ( ... ...

    Abstract To gauge the impact of COVID-19 on the Canadian beekeeping sector, we conducted a survey of over 200 beekeepers in the fall of 2020. Our survey results show Canadian beekeepers faced two major challenges: 1) disrupted importation of honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) (queen and bulk bees) that maintain populations; and 2) disrupted arrival of temporary foreign workers (TFWs). Disruptions in the arrival of bees and labor resulted in fewer colonies and less colony management, culminating in higher costs and lower productivity. Using the survey data, we develop a profitability analysis to estimate the impact of these disruptions on colony profit. Our results suggest that a disruption in either foreign worker or bee arrival allows beekeepers to compensate and while colony profits are lower, they remain positive. When both honey bee and foreign workers arrivals are disrupted for a beekeeper, even when the beekeeper experiences less significant colony health and cost impacts, a colony with a single pollination contract is no longer profitable, and a colony with two pollination contracts has significantly reduced profitability. As COVID-19 disruptions from 2020 and into 2021 become more significant to long-term colony health and more costly to a beekeeping operation, economic losses could threaten the industry's viability as well as the sustainability of pollination-dependent crop sectors across the country. The economic and agricultural impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic have exposed a vulnerability within Canada's beekeeping industry stemming from its dependency on imported labor and bees. Travel disruptions and border closures pose an ongoing threat to Canadian agriculture and apiculture in 2021 and highlight the need for Canada's beekeeping industry to strengthen domestic supply chains to minimize future risks.
    MeSH term(s) Animals ; Beekeeping ; Bees ; COVID-19 ; Canada ; Pandemics ; SARS-CoV-2
    Language English
    Publishing date 2021-09-29
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
    ZDB-ID 3031-4
    ISSN 1938-291X ; 0022-0493
    ISSN (online) 1938-291X
    ISSN 0022-0493
    DOI 10.1093/jee/toab180
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  8. Article ; Online: Honey Bee Queen Production: Canadian Costing Case Study and Profitability Analysis.

    Bixby, Miriam / Hoover, Shelley E / McCallum, Robyn / Ibrahim, Abdullah / Ovinge, Lynae / Olmstead, Sawyer / Pernal, Stephen F / Zayed, Amro / Foster, Leonard J / Guarna, M Marta

    Journal of economic entomology

    2020  Volume 113, Issue 4, Page(s) 1618–1627

    Abstract: The decline in managed honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony health worldwide has had a significant impact on the beekeeping industry. To mitigate colony losses, beekeepers in Canada and around the world introduce queens into replacement colonies; ... ...

    Abstract The decline in managed honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony health worldwide has had a significant impact on the beekeeping industry. To mitigate colony losses, beekeepers in Canada and around the world introduce queens into replacement colonies; however, Canada's short queen rearing season has historically limited the production of early season queens. As a result, Canadian beekeepers rely on the importation of foreign bees, particularly queens from warmer climates. Importing a large proportion of (often mal-adapted) queens each year creates a dependency on foreign bee sources, putting beekeeping, and pollination sectors at risk in the event of border closures, transportation issues, and other restrictions as is currently happening due to the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic. Although traditional Canadian queen production is unable to fully meet early season demand, increasing domestic queen production to meet mid- and later season demand would reduce Canada's dependency. As well, on-going studies exploring the potential for overwintering queens in Canada may offer a strategy to have early season domestic queens available. Increasing the local supply of queens could provide Canadian beekeepers, farmers, and consumers with a greater level of agricultural stability and food security. Our study is the first rigorous analysis of the economic feasibility of queen production. We present the costs of queen production for three Canadian operations over two years. Our results show that it can be profitable for a beekeeping operation in Canada to produce queen cells and mated queens and could be one viable strategy to increase the sustainability of the beekeeping industry.
    MeSH term(s) Animals ; Beekeeping ; Bees ; Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; Canada ; Coronavirus Infections ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; Reproduction ; SARS-CoV-2
    Keywords covid19
    Language English
    Publishing date 2020-06-02
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
    ZDB-ID 3031-4
    ISSN 1938-291X ; 0022-0493
    ISSN (online) 1938-291X
    ISSN 0022-0493
    DOI 10.1093/jee/toaa102
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  9. Article ; Online: A Bio-Economic Case Study of Canadian Honey Bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) Colonies: Marker-Assisted Selection (MAS) in Queen Breeding Affects Beekeeper Profits.

    Bixby, Miriam / Baylis, Kathy / Hoover, Shelley E / Currie, Rob W / Melathopoulos, Andony P / Pernal, Stephen F / Foster, Leonard J / Guarna, M Marta

    Journal of economic entomology

    2017  Volume 110, Issue 3, Page(s) 816–825

    Abstract: Over the past decade in North America and Europe, winter losses of honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colonies have increased dramatically. Scientific consensus attributes these losses to multifactorial causes including altered parasite and pathogen ... ...

    Abstract Over the past decade in North America and Europe, winter losses of honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colonies have increased dramatically. Scientific consensus attributes these losses to multifactorial causes including altered parasite and pathogen profiles, lack of proper nutrition due to agricultural monocultures, exposure to pesticides, management, and weather. One method to reduce colony loss and increase productivity is through selective breeding of queens to produce disease-, pathogen-, and mite-resistant stock. Historically, the only method for identifying desirable traits in honey bees to improve breeding was through observation of bee behavior. A team of Canadian scientists have recently identified markers in bee antennae that correspond to behavioral traits in bees and can be tested for in a laboratory. These scientists have demonstrated that this marker-assisted selection (MAS) can be used to produce hygienic, pathogen-resistant honey bee colonies. Based on this research, we present a beekeeping case study where a beekeeper's profit function is used to evaluate the economic impact of adopting colonies selected for hygienic behavior using MAS into an apiary. Our results show a net profit gain from an MAS colony of between 2% and 5% when Varroa mites are effectively treated. In the case of ineffective treatment, MAS generates a net profit benefit of between 9% and 96% depending on the Varroa load. When a Varroa mite population has developed some treatment resistance, we show that MAS colonies generate a net profit gain of between 8% and 112% depending on the Varroa load and degree of treatment resistance.
    MeSH term(s) Animals ; Arthropod Antennae/metabolism ; Beekeeping/economics ; Bees/genetics ; Breeding/economics ; Canada ; Genetic Markers ; Selection, Genetic
    Chemical Substances Genetic Markers
    Language English
    Publishing date 2017-02-01
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
    ZDB-ID 3031-4
    ISSN 1938-291X ; 0022-0493
    ISSN (online) 1938-291X
    ISSN 0022-0493
    DOI 10.1093/jee/tox077
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  10. Article: Honey Bee Queen Production: Canadian Costing Case Study and Profitability Analysis

    Bixby, Miriam / Hoover, Shelley E / McCallum, Robyn / Ibrahim, Abdullah / Ovinge, Lynae / Olmstead, Sawyer / Pernal, Stephen F / Zayed, Amro / Foster, Leonard J / Guarna, M Marta

    J Econ Entomol

    Abstract: The decline in managed honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony health worldwide has had a significant impact on the beekeeping industry. To mitigate colony losses, beekeepers in Canada and around the world introduce queens into replacement colonies; ... ...

    Abstract The decline in managed honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colony health worldwide has had a significant impact on the beekeeping industry. To mitigate colony losses, beekeepers in Canada and around the world introduce queens into replacement colonies; however, Canada's short queen rearing season has historically limited the production of early season queens. As a result, Canadian beekeepers rely on the importation of foreign bees, particularly queens from warmer climates. Importing a large proportion of (often mal-adapted) queens each year creates a dependency on foreign bee sources, putting beekeeping, and pollination sectors at risk in the event of border closures, transportation issues, and other restrictions as is currently happening due to the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic. Although traditional Canadian queen production is unable to fully meet early season demand, increasing domestic queen production to meet mid- and later season demand would reduce Canada's dependency. As well, on-going studies exploring the potential for overwintering queens in Canada may offer a strategy to have early season domestic queens available. Increasing the local supply of queens could provide Canadian beekeepers, farmers, and consumers with a greater level of agricultural stability and food security. Our study is the first rigorous analysis of the economic feasibility of queen production. We present the costs of queen production for three Canadian operations over two years. Our results show that it can be profitable for a beekeeping operation in Canada to produce queen cells and mated queens and could be one viable strategy to increase the sustainability of the beekeeping industry.
    Keywords covid19
    Publisher WHO
    Document type Article
    Note WHO #Covidence: #735735
    Database COVID19

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