>> Moreover, beekeepers, who are occupationally exposed to fumagillin, may 
>> also be at genotoxic risk. There is an urgent necessity for their 
>> compulsory education concerning consumers' safety. Similar caution should 
>> be taken with patients treated with fumagillin against microsporidia.

From time to time, we get hints that this drug may have some unintended and 
sometimes serious side-effects or impacts on non-target organisms (like 
beekeepers and their customers).  Until recently, use has been occasional 
and fairly limited, but recently beekeepers have been upping the dose and 
frequency.

With any drug, there should be a good reason for using it, since very few 
interventions, if any, are completely beneficial, with no downside.

We are now seeing beekeepers treat across the board, "preventively", with no 
previous monitoring to indicate immediate need.  In fact, this practice is 
recommended in some jurisdictions.  (It is worth noting that the drug is 
banned in others).

I understand the prudence of such an approach until such time as we can have 
reasonable confidence that the cause of random, catastrophic losses, which 
seem to correlate with nosema, are better understood and alternative 
measures are tested and proven, however, this is one more chemical which we 
must be certain to keep out of our products.

At this point, I am not aware of MRLs, but we can expect that regulators 
will (rightly) begin to look more closely at this drug.  Conceivably it 
could wind up in the same category as the antibiotics (chloramphenicol) 
which were found in Chinese honey a few years back and which resulted in 
bans and product recalls.  Hopefully not.

At present there is quite a bit of work being done to determine why nosema 
has again become a problem,  Apparently it was a problem in the '60s and 
'70s (date confirmation required) but the disease receded into the 
background, much as the once dreaded tracheal mite has now.  There is also 
work being done to examine alternate nosema control measures using less 
serious chemicals and methods.

In the meantime, be careful out there! 

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