Listen to Dr. David Goulson, Univ. of Sussex, in the UK, talk on neonics in bees and honey, from The Voice of America
The decline of the world’s industrialized honeybees has been well documented. A combination of pesticides and parasites have led to whole bee colonies dying off. Now, it turns out the pesticides that are hurting the bees are also turning up in the world’s honey supply. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports.
Use this link to listen: https://www.voanews.com/a/bees-are-carrying-pesticides-into-most-of-the-worlds-honey/4060808.html
As you may be aware a number of news stories ran recently regarding the level of pesticides found in honey samples.
The official statement from the National Honey Board on the issue:
“We understand the concerns people have about honey and pesticides. Honey is one of nature’s purest products, made by bees with no additives or preservatives of any kind, and it is totally safe to eat. Though beekeepers do not use neonicotinoid insecticides, honey bees can come into contact with them when foraging for food. The concentrations found in honey were well below thresholds that would pose any risk to humans. However, our industry is concerned that neonicotinoids could be a contributing factor to poor pollinator health, which is why the National Honey Board allocates five percent of its revenue each year to bee health research and has done so since 2008, representing funding of over $3 million to-date. We also recently partnered with Project Apis m. and together we have pledged an additional $10 million investment by 2020.”
