Queensland beekeepers desperate for new varroa mite treatments as colonies collapse

With the industry in the grips of a "terrifying" fight for survival against varroa mites, Queensland beekeepers have gathered in Bundaberg desperate for news of effective treatments.

Varroa is a parasitic mite that attacks European honey bee colonies.

Almost all wild honey bees in south-east Queensland are gone, and many of the state's managed colonies have either collapsed or are under threat.

Murray Arkadieff runs one of the region's biggest commercial operations and has already lost a quarter of his bees.

He treats his hives using the methods approved by Australian regulators, including oxalic acid and synthetic miticides.

But he said the mites are now resistant to the synthetic treatments, and some methods are not suitable to be used in Queensland conditions. All of the options are expensive when used at scale.

"It'll cost us upwards of $300,000," he said.

He is frustrated at being told by Queensland authorities to continue using the same treatment regimen and to "hang on" until the threat dies down and the industry can rebuild.

"At the moment we're trying to apply US treatments to an Australian environment and that, clearly, is not working because our bees are dying," he said.

"If we're not producing income because all our bees are dead, then we can't stay in the industry to then rebuild it."

Adding to the financial burden is the presence of other pests which benefit from varroa infestations, including the small hive beetle.

The mite weakens the colony, which then cannot defend itself from the beetle.

The beetles lay their eggs in the hive, and when their larvae hatch, they eat the honey and brood, leaving behind a fermented sludge.

Mr Arkadieff said resurrecting the frames is too difficult and expensive, so he resorts to burning them.

It costs hundreds of dollars at a time to send the remaining hive boxes to a specialist facility in Narangba to be sterilised.

"Varroa is terrifying, but the pathogens it brings with it are also just as terrifying," he said.

No direct financial support

Beekeepers are calling for direct support or loans from the Queensland government, and significant investment in finding new treatments that work in the sunshine state.

The state's agriculture minister has ruled out any relief payments.

Instead, Tony Perrett said the government remained focused on working with industry stakeholders and finding a way to treat to the resistant varroa mites.

"I've written to [federal minister Julie Collins] seeking not only her department's attention and support with respect to this but also the APVMA (Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority)," Mr Perrett said.

He said an emergency roundtable will be held before the end of June to discuss potential solutions.

'Pretty devastating' pollination impact

At an industry meeting in Bundaberg, new varroa treatments were front of mind.

Chief executive of the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council Danny Le Feuvre said an emerging biochemistry technology, which uses double-stranded RNA to silence reproductive genes, looked promising, but was "not a silver bullet".

"Of all the chemistry around the world, we have them available in Australia for our beekeepers, but we know it's still not enough," he said.

"There is a lot of research happening, but it'll be in the longer term for that to get to market."

Varroa mite experts also warned the local horticulture industry that it would be next to feel the impact.

Honey bees are responsible for much of the pollination needed to grow avocados, mangoes, macadamias and almonds, and there are now much fewer bees around to do the job.

Recent modelling from the Wheen Bee Foundation found New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia could face a shortfall of 290,000 hives during the August peak pollination period if feral honey bees decline and managed hives fall by 60 per cent.

Research scientist Diana Leemon said she expected to see some "pretty devastating" losses.

"The almond industry is very aware and has been preparing for this," Ms Leemon said.

"I know of one of the pollinators in Queensland, he was hoping to 150,000 hives for almonds and he said he'll be lucky to get 120,000 because the mites hit him."

"It's probably more important than ever that there's collaboration or coordination between growers and beekeepers."

However, new research being conducted in New Zealand is offering beekeepers a glimmer of hope.

A new biopesticide aims to make the varroa mites infertile using double-stranded RNA to silence reproductive genes.

It could be up to two years before the product is available in Australia.