Honey Run Apiaries-A Beekeeper’s Blog

The 2008 Farm Bill (June 18, 2008) created a new Emergency Assistance program for Livestock, Honey Bees and Farm-Rased Fish (ELAP).   According the the limited documentation on www.fsa.usda.gov you would need to buy in by September 16, 2008.  Most of us would not be requried to pay any "buy-in" fees as we would fall in the "Limited Resource Producer" classification (Less than $100,000 in gross farm sales), though it’s unclear what needs to be done if you fall in such classification…

However…..  there is no additional information at all on what the program covers, what documentation is required nor what the benifits may be.

So I wrote the USDA…. their official response after 3 months….

Until the regulations are published in the Federal Register for ELAP, all types of losses for which honey bee producers may be compensated for under ELAP will not be known.  However, some of the possible losses that may be compensated for under ELAP are:

1.  purchased or harvested feed that was intended as feed for honey bees that was destroyed or lost because of an eligible adverse weather event;

2.  physical losses of honey bees/honey bee hives because of colony collapse disorder or eligible adverse weather events.

Remember, these are just examples of losses that may or may not be compensated under ELAP.  A forthcoming regulation in the Federal Register will provide final determinaitons.

So, in short.. nearly a year after the program was created, and long after any losses and required paperwork should have been submitted….  The USDA still does not know what the program covers, what is required to obtain coverage or make a claim, nor when they might actually have this information.  I guess this shouldn’t be a surprise coming from a government agency.

The sad thing is, any producer who really needed the money to stay in business due to losses over the 2008-2009 winter will be out of business by the time they receive any money that could have helped them rebuild their apiaries this spring.

 Snakes on a Plane?  Nope, just bees.  Most beekeepers just picked up their bees by car or truck, but this Michigan beekeeper saved some time by air.

The package bees arrived this past Friday and most beekeepers who had ordered a packaged picked them up on Saturday with the remainder picked up on Sunday.  I must say I was impressed with the quality of the packages so far.  The bees were in very good shape with fewer dead bees than I’ve ever seen in packages, plus the packages weighed a full 2.5-2.6 pounds of bees in the couple I checked.  Very good for 2lb packages.  I only got a few for myself as I really have enough bees.  It’s too soon to see if the queens are as good, but it’s a very promising start.

The Maumee Valley Region will be holding it’s class on June 5th and 6th.   It is a hands on class where you will learn both the theory of queen rearing and practical methods with a slant on rearing queens in Ohio.  Cost of the class is $50 to members of the Ohio Beekeeping Association, otherwise the cost is $70 and includes a 1 year membership to the association.

Full details and a map to the location can be downloaded in this PDF – 2009 Queen Classes

If you have any questions or to reserve a spot call me at 419-371-1742 or email tarheit@honeyrunapiaires.com

Classes will be held this year in 8 regions of Ohio.  Should our class not fit your schedule or location, check out out the OSBA webpage for other queen rearing classes held in Ohio this year.

Note: Unlike last year, there is a fee to all individuals taking the class this year.  This fee was set by the Ohio Queen Project and all of the money will be used to further the project and its goal of both teaching beekeepers to raise queens and to develop a breeding program in Ohio.  All the regional coordinators are unpaid volunteers and donate their time, money and often supplies to teach and further the program.