Minister pressed on bees

1:33pm Friday 21st November 2008

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Shadow Secretary of State for the Department of Farming Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Tim Farron MP has called on Hilary Benn to increase the investment in bee health research or risk losing the British honey bee for ever.

Since the winter of 2007, there has been a 30% reduction in the British honey bee population due to the varroa mite which has been destroying wild bee colonies across the country. How-ever, despite the desperation of the situation, until recently funding allocated for bee health research had remained at paltry £200,000.

DEFRA has allocated an additional £90,000 for bee health research, but a parliamentary question tabled by Mr Farron revealed that the department has allocated it for expanding investigations into cases of abnormal colony losses rather than for research into alternative treatments for the varroa mite.

Commenting Mr Farron said: “What many people don’t know is that bees are the unsung hero of our agricultural economy and aren’t just responsible for producing honey. The honey bee plays a vital role within the planet's eco-system, pollinating 70% of the food that we eat and contributing more than £165 million a year to agricultural output.

“Yet, despite this, the budget commissioned for bee health research and development is lower in real terms now than in 2001.”