> Some states even allow commercial beekeepers to inspect their competitors - you can image the problems that causes.

I observed this first hand, bee inspectors attempting to intimidate. One inspector wrote to the beekeeper (who had been an inspector at one time himself) -- I don't move bees into your area, don't move into mine. It's well known that being a state inspector gives you very important information on where the best honey yields are gotten, information that inspectors used to locate their own hives. 

When I served as NYS inspector, they had just passed a law saying bee inspectors couldn't own hives. Which reduced the number of qualified inspectors from 1000s to 10s. Where do you find qualified beekeepers that don't have any hives? I didn't a the time, because I had been managing 200 at Cornell, and didn't have any of my own. Other inspectors had been employees previously working for commercial operations. 

Peter L Borst

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