Key readings in managed pollination in Australia

• The beekeeping industry faces significant challenges aside from the threat of varroa (CIE 2005; House of Reps 2008).
• The longer varroa is kept out of Australia, the more money is saved (Cook et al 2007).
• The more preparation is done to bolster the pollination services industry, the more money will be saved if varroa or a similar devastating bee disease enters the country (Monck et al 2008).
• In the 2006-7 industry survey, only 36% of surveyed commercial beekeepers in Australia intended to begin or expand pollination service provision (Crooks 2008).
• Lack of training and people entering the honeybee industry is a recognised area of concern, but firm plans to address the barriers to entry have not been developed (House of Reps 2008; CIE 2005).

References

Centre for International Economics. 2005. Future directions for the Australian honeybee industry. Canberra: Centre for International Economics. http://www.honeybee.org.au/pdf/CIE_FINAL_REPORT.pdf.

Cook, David C, Matthew B Thomas, Saul A Cunningham, Denis L Anderson, and Paul J De Barro. 2007. Predicting the economic impact of an invasive species on an ecosystem service. Ecological Applications 17, no. 6: 1832-1840. 

Crooks, Sarah. 2008. Australian Honeybee Industry Survey 2006-07. Canberra: Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. https://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/downloads/08-170.pdf.

 House of Representatives Standing Committee on Primary Industries and Resources. 2008. Report of the inquiry into the future of the Australian honey bee industry. Canberra: Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/pir/honeybee/report/fullreport.pdf.  

Monck, Michael, Jenny Gordon, and Kevin Hanslow. 2008. Analysis of the Market for Pollination Services in Australia. Canberra: Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. https://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/downloads/08-058.pdf.