Help in fighting varroa menace

07 September 1998

Help in fighting varroa menace

THE NFU is offering advice to farmers hit by the shortage of bees, caused by the varroa mite.

In the south-east, up to 90% of bees have been wiped out by the parasitic mite, reducing pollination and cutting yields of crops such as beans and oilseed rape by as much as 20%.

The NFU is running a campaign to raise awareness of the problem and to provide information on how to attract more honey and bumble bees to the farm.

A leaflet includes details of the National Pollination Service which supplies farmers and growers with honey bee colonies on demand.