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Bee Care offers disease testing for beekeepers

The National Agricultural Genotyping Center is now offering beekeepers testing services for major colony diseases.

President and CEO Pete Snyder tells Brownfield the Bee Care diagnostic service will test for 11 major bee diseases that contribute to colony collapse disorder.  “There is no easy answer to the colony collapse disorder, but what we’re trying to do is provide the beekeeper with an understanding of what he is facing and then he can take the appropriate action to correct the disorder.”

Snyder recommends beekeepers test hives as they come out of hibernation as well as halfway through the season.  “If they’re going to be shipping bees someplace else, you better do it pre-shipment and before you’re bringing them back home.  You don’t want them to go off someplace, pick up the disease and bring it back.”

He says while the USDA does offer a testing service for beekeepers, it can take up to 13 months to get results and only tests for one disease at a time.

Research and development of the Bee Care testing service was supported by the National Corn Growers Association and North Dakota Department of Agriculture.

AUDIO: Interview with Pete Snyder