SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Feb. 16 (EUROPE PRESS) –
The Cabildo de Tenerife will allocate this year an aid of 92,000 euros that will be directed to the beekeepers’ associations of the Island and that intends to defray the expenses for the acquisition of specific complementary foods for bees, rich in sugars, proteins and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) that improve their nutritional status and thus contribute to preserving the beekeeping population of Tenerife.
The island councilor for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Javier Parrilla, explained that the objective is “to improve the productivity and health status of beekeeping farms, as well as to promote the maintenance of pollination of crops and wild plants by honey bees.” “.
Javier Parrilla stressed that supporting beekeeping associations is essential to protect the general interest of the island, “thanks to the pollinating role of bees”, and hopes that with this support the income of farms on the island will increase.
The counselor also informed that next Saturday the VI Technical Conference of the Association of Veterinary Specialists in Beekeeping (Avespa) will be held at the Casa de la Miel. They will address issues such as the quality and safety of production, the marketing of honey or the importance of sensory analysis in the characterization of honey. The event will be held in collaboration with the Beekeepers Association of Tenerife (Apiten) as the managing body of the Miel de Tenerife Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).
In the clinical setting, a presentation will be made on resistance to varroa mites, “whose effects are devastating for the sector,” Parrilla said. Currently, varroosis is the worldwide disease that causes the most damage to beekeeping. It is an external acariasis that affects both brood and adult bees. In this way, the damage it produces not only comes from its plundering action, but also because it favors the widespread appearance of viral and bacterial infections.
In Spain and the rest of the European Union it is endemic. In fact, it is the only bee disease that requires systematic colony treatment to keep parasitization rates below damaging thresholds.
In this sense, the Minister wanted to remember that the lack of rain in recent years has caused a decrease in blooms, with poor quality nectar and pollen that has directly influenced the physical state of the bees. The lack of food and nutrients has caused weakness in the colonies, which poses a risk to the survival of the hives, even more vulnerable to disease.
For this reason, Parrilla continued, “the Cabildo will maintain its support for beekeeping and will defray the costs for the acquisition of complementary food for bees.” The counselor also added that the 2021 aid benefited a total of 581 beekeepers, which translates into some 14,284 hives.
“We are lucky to have a rich and quality variety of honey on the island, which is an added value to our gastronomy, in addition to the essential pollination work for our crops, so we must correctly assess the production and maintenance of our cabin and protect her in the most difficult moments”, he concluded.
