Question 10827 — overseas

Summary

Mr. David Lorion draws the attention of the Minister of Agriculture and Food to the excess mortality of bees in Reunion. At the beginning of May 2017, the beekeeping epidemiological surveillance network detected the first case of the presence of varroa, in an apiary located in the town of Saint-Denis. A month later, nearly 150 apiaries tested positive around the island. Only four regions were still preserved, protected by the relief: the three cirques (Cilaos, Salazie, Mafate), the Grand Bassin region and the Bébourg-Bélouve forest. In November 2017, studies showed that varroa was unfortunately present across the entire island. Today, beekeepers are facing significant mortalities affecting up to 50% of the bee population in the west of Reunion. Furthermore, beekeepers had to face the consequences of conditions particularly difficult climates. The 2017 lychee honey flow was particularly catastrophic: no harvest and this after a very average pink berry honey flow in April 2017. This year's pink berry honey flow was also bad, with beekeepers having suffered four tropical storms before and during the honey flow. In the absence of a harvest, beekeepers currently receive no income. In this context very difficult, many of them will be forced to cease their activity if they are not quickly supported. The protective measures requested over the past ten years have not had the desired effect at the regional level. It is now important to save the Reunion bee, an important part of local biodiversity. Furthermore, other scourges threaten the survival of this native bee, such as American foulbrood, aethina tumida, Asian hornet, etc. If no sustainable and long-term protection plan is put in place by the public authorities, the entire beekeeping industry risks disappearing. Faced with the urgency of the situation encountered by Reunion beekeepers, he asked what measures he intended to take to support the local beekeeping industry and preserve the existence of bees.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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