Why are honeybees dying en masse in the United States but thriving in China?
With 62 per cent of American hives wiped out in 6 months last year, Chinese scientists are racing to improve anti-mite defences
While the US suffered its largest recorded collapse in its commercial honeybee colonies, China’s bee population has reached a historic high, maintaining the country’s long-standing position as the world’s largest producer of apiary goods.
In stark contrast, China saw a 25 per cent increase on the last survey to a record 15 million colonies last year, according to researchers from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences’ Institute of Apicultural Research (IAR).
IAR professor Xu Shufa said that “the fundamental difference lies in management practices”.
“The US model relies on large-scale, clustered operations where single apiaries may contain thousands of colonies. Beekeepers typically transport hives to nectar-rich areas for extended periods, intervening minimally until honey harvest,” Xu said.