Beekeepers say new N.S. funding program not enough to recoup massive hive loss

Some of Nova Scotia's beekeepers say the province's recently announced increase in financial support for the industry is a step in the right direction, but doesn't do enough to address major losses they have faced in the last year.

Last week, the Department of Agriculture said its Apiculture Sustainable Growth and Health Program will provide eligible beekeepers up to $50,000, which is up from a maximum of $27,000 in 2023.

The program focuses on beekeepers looking to expand to pollinate more commercial crops, offering $200 per additional hive for pollination, which is double last year's amount.

The president of the Nova Scotia Beekeepers Association said that right now, however, beekeepers are in recovery mode after major hive loss in the last year, some of which was due to last summer's historic flooding.

«If we didn't have that bad 2023 year, this program would look pretty good,» Duncan Wetzel said. «But it doesn't address any of the losses.»

Wetzel said Nova Scotia's beekeepers normally only lose around 15 per cent of bees during the winter, but most recently that number went up to more than 30 per cent. Wetzel said he lost around 40 per cent of his hives.

«It's been pointed out to me by one of the [association] members that it's no point adding a few hives to grow if your losses are so much more significant,» he added.

Wetzel said the last year was particularly hard on larger operations in the province, some of which had up to 2,500 colonies.

Through the pollination expansion portion of the program, a maximum of $30,000 in funding is available at $200 a hive — translating to 150 hives — for eligible beekeepers who had more than 500 hives used for pollination in 2023. Meanwhile, funding for the purchase of packaged bees and