Ottawa and the Province are opening up $1 million in AgriRecovery support to help Saskatchewan beekeepers rebuild their colonies.
The funding is being made available for commercial beekeepers that suffered abnormally high colony losses of over 30 per cent in 2022.
Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay says bees play a vital role in pollinating so many of our crops, and are integral to the success of our Canadian agricultural system.
On average, Saskatchewan is home to about 100,000 colonies, which produce almost 20 million pounds of honey each year.
Stat's show that Saskatchewan lost about 35 per cent of its commercial honeybee colonies in 2022.
Nathan Wendell, President of the Saskatchewan Beekeepers Development Commission says it was a challenging year for producers.
"The Varroa mite is a parasite of honeybees. That's one of the primary causes of overwintering loss, not just in Saskatchewan, but across Canada. In that particular year 2022, there were some difficult conditions including drought in the fall that probably contributed to some of those losses as well."
Wendell says the $1 million in AgriRecovery funding will be key as producers look at rebuilding their operations.
"We have producers that were losing or did lose 40, 50 or 60 per cent maybe even upwards of that of their colonies. So they had to make some difficult decisions about stock replacement and sacrifice honey production to regain their hive numbers. Sometimes it's significant to them in their operations. So the producers who are eligible for funding will be very grateful to get some relief from those expenses in rebuilding their hive numbers."
Agriculture Minister David Marit says commercial beekeeping operations have a critical role in our ecosystem and are also integral to Saskatchewan's agriculture industry, pollinating crops while being responsible for roughly one-fifth of Canada's honey production.
"This assistance covers up to 70 per cent of the costs related to replacing lost stock and colonies and is the most efficient option for helping restore commercial production."
The AgriRecovery funding will help eligible producers cover up to 70 per cent of the costs associated with replacing lost stock and colonies.
Saskatchewan joins Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario in providing assistance to beekeepers who lost stock and colonies.