Thank you very much.
Hi, everyone. I'm the first vice-president of the Quebec association.
I have no trouble speaking English, but my mother tongue is French, so I am going to continue my presentation in French.
My name is Maggie Lamothe Boudreau and I am the first vice-president of the Apiculteurs et Apicultrices du Québec.
Five minutes is not a long time to talk to you about all the problems that beekeeping faces every year in Quebec and Canada. In addition to the extremely high rates of inflation we have been seeing for about a year and a half, and the constantly rising interest rates, the beekeeping industry is facing annual bee mortality rates that are beyond comprehension in agriculture.
In Quebec, the annual bee losses suffered over the last 15 years have averaged over 25 per cent. In Canada, the average is about 27 per cent.
Last year, we suffered record losses. Almost 50 per cent of bees died. That has endangered the beekeeping industry in Quebec and the other regions of Canada enormously.
How can we make up for these losses in Canada at present? Unfortunately, we are turning a lot to other countries for imports. However, that comes with its own share of problems, since we are importing bees whose genetics are completely unadapted to our Canadian winters and our climate, which is more humid than in other countries.
These differences have led to the emergence of various diseases that have caused astronomical losses of hives and colonies for a number of commercial beekeepers.
We are also importing parasites, and that can really have harmful effects on bees. Examples are varroa and small hive beetle, which could present a very serious challenge across Canada.
There are also other problems, such as viruses, that could infect imported bees. It is very difficult to control the emergence of diseases caused by these viruses.
Several committees have been created in recent years, one being the Working Group on Honey Bee Sustainability, which has done a lot to define the objectives that the beekeeping industry must aim for in the coming years. It has offered some very interesting solutions.
I am talking about them right off the top because these are the most important points to address in the five minutes I am allotted. First, we have to aim for self-sufficiency. This is extremely important. Our local bees survive much better than bees that come from Hawaii, for example, which have never seen winter, or from California, that are not at all adapted to our winters.
Second, we also have to improve disease management in Canada, including the diseases caused by varroa. Canada is much harder hit by this insect than are southern countries, because beekeepers have to manage their hives over the winter. Varroa consumes bees' fat reserves, and this significantly reduces their lifespan and makes them unable to survive the winter.
Other diseases are also carried by varroa, in particular viruses, which have a heavy effect on hives. Even if varroa is treated, and over the season a certain economic threshold is reached, it is too late, because the viruses have already spread. At present, we have few solutions for treating the virus, so in spring we find that the bees in our hives have died.
We also need to have access to adequate insurance and to assistance when we suffer losses in our businesses. I am a queen bee producer and a lot of my customers tell me terrible stories about their losses. Their children do not even want to take over the family business if adequate solutions to these problems are not found.
As well, we need to have access to biodiversity. Pollen is extremely important for bees. It enables them to feed their brood and supply them with all the amino acids needed to nourish them. A shortage of pollen for a few weeks affects not only the generation of bees that suffers the shortage but also the next three or four generations.
It is as if we and our children ate spaghetti for three weeks; we would lack vitamins and our children would not have all the vitamins they need in order to grow.
I think I have covered what I wanted to say. I have done it quickly, so please don't hesitate to ask questions.
Before the meeting, I sent you a much more detailed document. If you would like more, I can send you additional information afterward.