Honeybee health hit by high hive levels
March 30, 2016
From: Radio New Zealand
Alexa Cook, Rural Reporter
An influx of newcomers to the industry is threatening bees’ survival by concentrating tens of thousands of hives, which puts the bees too close together, the National Beekeepers Association says.
RNZ Rurals has been told beekeeping companies from Wellington and the Wairarapa are offering cash to farmers in Hawke’s Bay to put hives on their farms, but are not putting them far enough from businesses such as Arataki and Kintail, which have been on the land for many years.
National Beekeepers Association Hawke’s Bay branch president John Berry said there had been a huge surge in interest since the price of manuka honey soared.
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