Authorities have been battling to contain the spread of varroa mite in honeybee hives across New South Wales for over a year, but the situation has worsened. The deadly parasite has been picked up in two agricultural regions in the state's south prompting Victorian authorities to establish emergency bio-security zones. The developments have some calling for a re-think of the current approach to the pest.
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00:00 It's the news beekeepers and farmers have been dreading.
00:06 Varroa mite being detected in the southern reaches of New South Wales, including on the
00:11 Victorian border.
00:12 That is extremely disappointing given all the hard work that NSW DPI have been put in
00:17 to try and eradicate varroa.
00:19 The pest has been detected in the Riverina and Sunraysia regions, where hives will be
00:24 destroyed in 10km eradication zones.
00:28 We're trying to understand the extent of any further spread beyond what we've already determined.
00:34 The affected hives had been transported from Kempsey on the Mid North Coast before an infestation
00:39 was discovered there.
00:41 Where can we operate our bees in the near future?
00:43 Where do we get our honey from?
00:45 Our honey prices are quite low at the moment, which is not good, and cost of production
00:51 and fuel price, everything's up.
00:52 Some see the latest spread as the tipping point to move from eradication to some level
00:57 of acceptance.
00:58 I think this is going to change the way we look at it.
01:03 I believe we'll go to transition to management.
01:05 We don't take recent developments as a sign that eradication has failed or is not worth
01:09 pursuing.
01:10 That still remains the aim.
01:11 Pollination by bees is crucial to food and fibre production in the Riverina.
01:16 In the impacted zone at Yerroli near Narrandera, currently canola and almond crops are thriving
01:22 and any outbreaks of varroa mite could have huge impacts on production.
01:26 The Federal Agriculture Department is also investigating the suspected illegal importation
01:32 of live bees, after information was passed on by NSW authorities in June.
01:38 Industry figures will consider the varroa mite strategy at a meeting next week.
01:41 [BLANK_AUDIO]