Beekeepers marched on Parliament today demanding millions of pounds to safeguard the future of the honey bee in the UK.

Honey will not be the only casualty if the Apis mellifera population continues to dwindle as the bees are responsible for much of the pollination that sustains the British fruit industry.

Millions of bees have already been killed by the varroa mite and commercial and casual keepers now fear that Colony Collapse Disorder could migrate from Europe and America. CCD has already devastated US bee colonies.

“Immediate action needs to be taken to avoid this economic and ecological disaster in the making,” said Tim Lovett, president of the British Beekeepers’ Association (BBKA).

“Does the Government want the nation to go without honey on their toast, not have home-grown strawberries to go with cream, and even put their own crusade for the public to eat five portions of fresh fruit and vegetables at risk?”

The BBKA estimates that pollination by honey bees contributes £165 million a year to the agricultural economy.

Earlier this month, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Welsh Assembly announced their own proposals for bee protection.

Under the scheme, volunteer beekeepers would be enlisted in any future emergencies to help a national team of bee inspectors to track and eradicate new viruses.

This Dad’s Army would be trained up and kitted out with safety suits and veiled helmets, but would remain a purely voluntary team.

There are currently between 200-300 commercial beekeepers in the UK and around 44,000 who keep bees purely as a hobby.

Defra would also impose controls at ports to identify bee smuggling, implement more checks for unrefined beeswax and introduce tighter controls on honey imports.

Beekeepers said there were “substantial shortcomings and omissions” in the proposals insisting that greater scientific study is needed. The BBKA wants the Government to spend £8 million on bee health research over the next five years.

Peter Ainsworth, the shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said: “Honey bees face a growing number of threats, and their importance to agriculture and the natural environment demands that we take action.

“There is concern among beekeepers that this consultation is a short-cut to budget cuts, which would be disastrous for local food production and biodiversity. Until the Government clarifies the level of funding available for bee health and research, few will have any confidence in the ability of this strategy to effectively confront this critical issue.”

The current Government proposals are open for consultation until the end of August before a ten-year plan is formalised in the autumn.

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