OBA presents to House of Commons agriculture committee

From the Ontario Bee Association

The OBA was pleased to be asked to present to the Standing Committee on Agriculture on June 6th with regard to their study on bee health monitoring in Canada.

Vice-President André Flys presented on behalf of the OBA, and you can read his full remarks here, but in summary, we made four recommendations:

1. Now is the time for the Government of Canada to take a leadership position on systemic pesticides. The much-publicized threat from the overuse of neonicotinoid and other systemic pesticides has not abated. Canada must step up its efforts to significantly reduce or eliminate improper use of pesticides as a preventative measure.

2. We are asking for an independent panel of bee health experts to provide oversight for the review of all systemic pesticides. Pesticide manufacturers have pushed new systemic pesticides into the pipeline in reaction to restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids in Europe and some North American jurisdictions.We need to trust that our regulators have the scientific capacity to conduct independent assessments. We need a systematic approach to assessing pesticides that is open, transparent and independent of industry.

3. Canada must maintain the policy of a Canadian border closed to imports of U.S. bees into Canada. We believe that opening the border will compromise the stability and future sustainability of the beekeeping industry. We agree with the risk assessment undertaken by CFIA in 2013 and see no reason to open this issue.

4. We call on the government to reassess the mandate and mission of the Bee Health Roundtable. We believe a reconstituted roundtable that reflects the full range of societal interests and expertise would be more likely to chart a positive and long lasting course for bee health in Canada.