To bee or not to bee

Standing Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

WEDNESDAY, 15 AUGUST 2007

Reference: Future development of the Australian Honey Bee Industry

The Chairman (Mr. Shultz) officially began proceedings by declaring the opening of the public hearing, addressing the intended audience and identifying the subject matter; an inquisition into the future development of the Australian Honey Bee Industry.
Mr. Shultz was very particular in outlining all the regulations that restrict or permit members of the inquiry within the hearing.

The Chairman then invited Mr. Fewster (Chair of Australian Bee Industry Council) to outline intended key areas of discussion which included pest control, industry access to resources, quarantine, research outcomes and honey based medicines.

A member in attendance, Mrs. Mirabella then raised concern regarding the credibility of a joint study between the RIRDC and Capilano as she believed it was not publicly available. These allegations were strongly denied by the Executive Director of the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council Mr. Ware. He reinforced his rebuttal by identifying that the research was not only readily available to the public through a number of mediums, but had also positively resulted in the registration of ‘Medihoney’ as a pharmaceutical product. Mrs. Mirabella later inquired more into the variations of Medihoney and suggested that the committee would support such an option.

Mr. Windsor, another member in attendance, then changed the subject matter to that of resource security which raised underlying issues regarding relationships between Beekeepers, state governments and the AHBIC. Generally these relationships were positive however the QLD government had indicated that they would like beekeeping operations out of the south-wets region by 2024 on the basis of environmental impact. The AHBIC accused the current party of basing this decision on short term political objectives which was later agreed upon by Mr. Shultz.

Mr. Fewster then outlined AHBIC’s two most important issues requiring immediate action upon Mr. Windsor’s request, these included; Biosecurity and Research and Development.

These needs for security lead to discussing possibilities of industry alliances which would also be a plausible method of raising funds for R&D. The most likely of the potential partnerships was with the almond industry.

Mr. Windsor then referred to a previously issued document when raising the issue of product distribution alternatives. Mr. Ware responded with the example of the failed internet bidding system which drove money out of the market rather than generating more profit for beekeepers.

A member in attendance, Mr. Secker, then forcefully raised the greens’ concerns regarding the honey bee industry. Mr. Ware identified these concerns (bees being introduced species and hence taking pollen away from native animals) however provided substantial evidence that bees do not negatively impact on the Australian ecosystem. On the contrary bees are responsible for the pollination of countless native flora and produce a multi-million dollar industry regarding not only honey but also many other Australian crops through pollination. Mr. Secker continued to aggressively question AHBIC’s methods of fund raising however Mr. Ware answered all questions in an informative and diligent manner.

Mr. Shultz, along with present members and the AHBIC then scrupulously reviewed all topics in detail and discussed and verified these among the committee. After clarifying these issues and notions the Chairman then provided an in depth analysis of the hearing and deduced that the bee industry is undervalued by most, including government, and there should be increased recognition of the indirect benefits that this industry provides to the Australian economy.