Project: NEW INDICATORS AND ON-FARM PRACTICES TO IMPROVE HONEYBEE HEALTH IN THE AETHINA TUMIDA ERA IN EUROPE
| Acronym | BPRACTICES (Reference Number: 83) |
| Duration | 01/02/2017 - 31/01/2020 |
| Project Topic | The estimated value of pollination service is between 13.5 and 21.5 billion dollars (FAO, 2006). European beekeeping suffers significant regional differences in colony losses due to external impacts on beekeeping, including climate and prevalence of diseases (EPILOBEE, 2014). This situation is likely to worsen with the spread of Aethina tumida (Small Hive Beetle – SHB), a new parasite affecting honeybee, found for the first time in the EU in Italy in 2014. Together with other bee diseases (American Foulbrood - AFB, European Foulbrood – EFB and Nosemosis), SHB may play an important role in colony losses and to beekeeping economy. The BPRACTICES project aims to develop new management practices (Good Beekeeping Practices - GBPs) adopting new clinical methods, biomechanical and innovative biomolecular techniques respecting the natural behaviour of bees. The research activities will focus on developing new biosensors from honey to monitor SHB presence and PCR techniques to diagnose in advance honeybee diseases (AFB, EFB, SHB) from debris. Another goal will be to accelerate and to raise efficiency of the clinical inspection of the hives to detect SHB. At the apiary level we will indicate a proper bee-friendly management (e.g. traps for SHB, honeybee queen-cages for varroa control, powder sugar method to assess varroa infestation level) to monitor and control the honeybee diseases, protecting their health and avoiding the application of chemical treatments guaranteeing quality and safety of hive products. The innovations will be validated in the daily apiary activities and disseminated internationally in collaboration with the International Federation of Beekeepers' Associations (Apimondia). Economical impact on beekeeping industry will be quantified. Consumers will be aware of the positive environmental impact of beekeeping and the ecosystem services provided, thanks to a cutting-edge traceability system using the QR-code/RFID technology. |
| Website | visit project website |
| Network | SusAn |
| Call | SusAn Call 2016 |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austrian Agency for Health & Food Safety | Partner | Austria |
| 2 | Centro de Investigación Apícola y Agroambiental de Marchamalo | Partner | Spain |
| 3 | Agricultural Institute of Slovenia | Partner | Slovenia |
| 4 | Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie | Partner | Italy |
| 5 | Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana 'M.Aleandri' | Coordinator | Italy |
| 6 | Mississippi State University | Partner | United States |
| 7 | University of Namik Kemal | Partner | Türkiye |