About 100 beekeepers Port Stephens impacted by Varroa mite detection

An estimated 100 beekeepers in the Port Stephens local government area are being impacted after biosecurity surveillance detected the Varroa mite parasite in hives near the Port of Newcastle last week.

Forced to take swift measures in order to contain the disease, the NSW government initiated a Hunter wide eradication plan, involving the setting up of a biosecurity zone within a 50km radius of the port.

A second zone was established on Tuesday after the deadly mite had been discovered in bee hives at three more properties - in Newcastle, Seaham and Bulahdelah.

David Vial, of Williamtown, has lived and breathed bees since establishing his first beehive more than 20 years ago.

He is vice-president of the Hunter Valley Amateur Beekeepers Club, and has between 160 and 180 bee hives spread across the region.

He also runs a business selling bees, which has been virtually wiped out overnight.

"This is devastating news ... bees have been my life for the past 20 years. I go to bed dreaming about bees and now everything has been totally destroyed," Mr Vial said.

"It will have a huge impact on the bee industry locally and on the wider community in the weeks, months and even years ahead.

"Already we are seeing the increase in the cost of fruit and vegetables due to shortages, a lack of bee pollination will affect produce growers even more."

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Mr Vial said that beekeepers across the entire state had been placed in lockdown.

"This means that beekeepers cannot move their beehives around. This will severely impact beekeepers with commercial qualities of hives and put a stop to what is referred in the industry as the 'chase nectar flow'," he said.

"This is where beekeepers take truckloads of bees to different areas of NSW to access plants in bloom, such as the canola flower is at present.

"For the local hobbyist with one or two hives, the ban means owners cannot open their bee hives, nor can they extract honey. They should, however, undertake a sugar shake test."

Mr Vial has also pleaded with local beekeepers who have not registered with the Department of Primary Industries to do so immediately.

"It is most important for the industry's future that all beekeepers are registered, so any keepers in Port Stephens yet to be registered should notify the department now."

According to the NSW Agricultural Minister Dugald Saunders, prior to last week's outbreak Australia had been the only major honey producing country free from Varroa mite and that its spread could cost the honey industry more than $70 million a year.

"Biosecurity is one of my top priorities and beekeepers have been working with the government through the National Bee Pest Surveillance Program to act as an early warning system," Mr Saunders said.

"If it weren't for their diligence in monitoring hives and catch boxes at strategic locations around our ports and airports, this threat may have gone undetected."

The mites are tiny reddish-brown parasites and are easily identifiable to the naked eye.

Mr Saunders issued a statewide emergency order on Sunday to control the movement and stop the spread of the varroa mite.

ALSO READ: There's more than honey at stake

The 50-kilometre zone established around the Port of Newcastle indicates beekeepers must notify the DPI of the locations of their hives.

A 25-kilometre surveillance zone remains active around the site, where officials are monitoring and inspecting managed and feral honey bees to limit the extent of the incursion.

The 10 kilometre emergency zone indicates eradication plans will be enacted to treat hives.

The initial three zones were located around the Port of Newcastle, but have now been placed around the three areas where the mite was detected in hives on Tuesday.

Despite the spread of the mite, Mr Saunders said the expansion of the zones was "no cause for alarm".

"[It] actually shows the surveillance system is doing its job to stay on top of where this parasite is hiding," Mr Saunders said.

"I would like to encourage all beekeepers, both commercial and recreational, within the new or original impacted areas to please come forward for the good of the industry.

"We know the devastating impacts varroa mite will have on our honey supplies and pollination across the state, if this threat is not stopped.

"The best path forward is to report the locations of potentially impacted hives to aid our response, so we have all the information we need to deal with this as swiftly as possible."

A total of seven infested premises have now been discovered through contact tracing, including the initial detection at sentinel hives near the Port of Newcastle.

DPI is working closely with industry and will hold a briefing with them on what the eradication process will look like. These next steps will be finalised in the coming days.

Reaction to the news of the deadly Varroa mite parasite infiltrating our shores has been swift, particularly in Port Stephens, Newcastle and the wider Hunter region.

The Newcastle-based Urban Hum said "we will have all our 90 hives destroyed to protect honeybees across Australia".

On Monday they shared on their Facebook page the fears facing many beekeepers right now.

"[We] started keeping bees in our backyard over 10 years ago to protect honeybees as the worldwide threat to bees hit the media. Our business grew organically from that first hive as we saw Newcastle shared our passion for bees," Urban Hum owners Anna Scobie and Kelly Lees said.

"With the Varroa mite parasite being detected in Newcastle we will have all our 90 hives destroyed to protect honeybees across Australia.

"Now the most powerful way to protect the Australian honeybee industry is to say goodbye to our bees. To stop beekeeping in Newcastle. All of our hives are in the 10km eradication zone. If your hive is too it will be destroyed.

"In the coming weeks, the Department of Primary Industry's Biosecurity emergency response team will take samples from your hive then it will be euthanised. This is hard and so sad. To starve the parasite, they will kill the host, our beautiful honeybee hives, and all feral/wild European honeybee colonies will die. Native bees will not be affected by Varroa mite and will not be targeted in the eradication by the DPI."

The beekeepers say they remain passionate about teaching every backyard beekeeping and the important network that bees are to Australia's food security.

"If Varroa Mite leaves this area we will lose between 40% and 90% of hives Australia-wide, we have seen this around the world. Be prepared that this red zone may expand if they find more mites.

"The biosecurity response team are passionate beekeepers called up from this area doing a hard job. Many will have lost their hives too in this response. When they enter your backyard remember this.

"We have some honey that is ready to Jar and we will be at the Olive tree market in July. After this, we do not know just yet. Newcastle may not be able to have hives for several years."

It is a sentiment shared by Mr Vial.

"At first we were expecting a six-month shut down of the industry, but now we are looking at potentially years. I'm not sure what I will do ... I guess I will go on a long holiday somewhere."

According to EcoNetwork Port Stephens, the native stingless bee or sugarbag bee thrives in Port Stephens, and more information on beekeeping generally and the current situation can be found at the Hunter Valley Amateur Beekeepers Club website, where members regularly meet at the Hunter Botanic Gardens which also has several native bee hives.

If you have bee colonies or hives in the notification, eradication or surveillance zones you must tell NSW DPI where they are. This includes queen bees in cages and packaged bees. Fill out the form here: www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/hives.

If you find varroa mite in a hive you are responsible for, notify DPI by:

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