AgriFutures Honey Bee and Pollination Program has continued to support leading research that ensures a productive and sustainable Australian beekeeping industry, and secure the pollination of the agricultural sector.
Australia’s 12,400 beekeepers are one-step closer to breeding varroa-resistant bees and trapping the serious and pervasive small hive beetle as a result of industry’s ongoing investment in a robust research, development and extension program.
With a vision to grow the long-term prosperity of rural industries, AgriFutures Australia works with industry to deliver research and development outcomes. It works in partnership with the AgriFutures™ Honey Bee & Pollination Program Advisory Panel to determine research priorities and make investment decisions.
Honey Bee & Pollination research manager Annelies McGaw said the resilience of Australia’s beekeepers was reflected in the dynamic RD&E program, which aimed to safeguard the health of Australia’s bees.
“Australian beekeeping is valued at $98 million, but its contribution to agriculture and the national economy is far greater,” Ms McGaw said.
“The RD&E Program addresses a number of key risks facing the industry including exotic pests and disease, economic pressures and reduced access to areas of native flora,” she said.
“We have 12 unique R&D projects underway that range from increasing the value of Australian honey as a health food to the probiotic development for bees by analysing gut bacteria in healthy bees, to name just a few.”
One of the year’s highlights was the findings of a three-year study into the SHB, led by Queensland researcher Diana Leemon, which found that a lantern trap, together with a simple yeast based attractant, could effectively intercept and trap the SHB before it reached an apiary.
As the largest and leading apiary pest in warm, damp regions of eastern Australia, the SHB costs the industry $11 million on average per year.
The project included the most comprehensive economic analysis of SHB ever undertaken, and provided a tangible outcome for industry to help manage the pest.
Advisory Panel chair Doug Somerville said a key benefit of the program was its ability to bring together industry, leading researchers and government to collectively find solutions.
“A great example is AgriFutures Australia Science and Innovation award recipient, Dr Emily Remnant, from the University of Sydney, who is investigating how to build Australia’s capacity to develop varroa-resistant bees,” he said.
“Dr Remant’s research has great promise as a future strategy against the varroa virus. Her research is investigating injecting a natural type of bacteria called Wolbachia into the abdomen of honey bees. Her trailblazing work could help to solve the world’s most damaging cause of honey bee deaths.”
