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News from the Amateur Beekeepers Association of NSW
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IMPORTANT INVITATION: ALL NSW CLUBS

(Clubs outside NSW cannot participate, but have been copied on this email for information purposes)
 

Please join this project to help control American Foulbrood (AFB)


The ABA is urging all NSW affiliated clubs to participate in an important statewide project to map changing levels of AFB in the environment. Data collected over time will allow biosecurity professionals to build up a picture of when and where bee colonies are at risk, and better target control efforts.

The project is part of NSW’s focus to reduce AFB’s deadly impact on bee colonies. This is known as the Department of Primary Industries’ AFB Minimisation Strategy
 

Here’s what your club should do:

We are asking each club to submit samples of honey from three different apiaries

One sample must be from the club’s apiary (if it has one). The club should then select two (or three) volunteers from among its members who are willing to collect a sample from their own hives. Volunteers should be prepared to participate in this project on an ongoing basis.

The project aims to collect benchmark data over a number of years from the same apiaries. Commercial beekeepers and honey packers are already participating in the mapping project. The ABA has lobbied government to include recreational beekeepers in sampling efforts for a more comprehensive picture of AFB in the environment.
 

How to sample

For each sample: extract honey from one or more hives in the same apiary. 
  • Collect a 100 gram (75 ml)  sample from the honey gate.  
  • Attach a note to the sample container by elastic band. This should specify  
    • beekeeper/club (contact, address, email and phone number), 
    • postcode and town of apiary, 
    • number of hives the sample is from, and 
    • collection date.
  • Pack sample in bubble wrap and send to:
    ABA Biosecurity Officer
    Bruce White
    14 Rondelay Drive
    Castle Hill NSW 2154
Please note: 
  • We need one sample per apiary, three apiaries per club. 
  • Do not use sticky labels to attach identifying details to jars. 
  • Samples need to reach us by 28 February, 2020
  • Samples can be mailed separately or in the same package.

What we will do


We will code the samples we receive and hand deliver them to the DPI laboratory. Personal details (e.g. member/club name, address, email, phone number) will not be provided to DPI.  Personal details will be known only to the ABA Biosecurity Officer and ABA Secretary.

Details provided to DPI:
  • Town / postcode where apiary is located
  • Number of colonies the honey sample has been extracted from
  • Collection date
Once the lab notifies us of the results of the AFB analysis, we will send these on to the submitter (beekeeper, or club if from club apiary).

There is no charge for laboratory testing. Clubs or beekeepers need to pay only for the postage to send samples to us.

Thank you for joining this important project. You’re helping protect bee populations now and in the future.

Bruce White
ABA Biosecurity Officer
For queries, contact: biosecurity@beekeepers.asn.au
December 2019
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Copyright © 2020 Amateur Beekeepers Australia, All rights reserved.


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