ALOHA
        First off let me state that I do not want the world to think that
I think that the Hawaiian honey bees are the cleanest honey bees on earth,
just the cleanest in the United States by virtue of not having mites or
AHB genes and that these colonies are the most isolated  colonies
on earth.I have always stated that Hawaii needs to be considered even
though we are small. We do not have the current survey data to claim
to be the healthiest bee hives on earth. Hawaii needs current survey data
 so that REAL risk assessment can be under taken to best protect the
Hawaiian honey bees. Because the feeling is that the "FIX IS ON " and
that no one can stop the NZ bees from being imported the testing will
have to be totally independent to assure objectivity and this will make
 the testing expensive. The Hawaii Dept. Of  Agriculture with it's budget
cuts has no money for testing and neither the USDA or anyone else has
 offered any money for the required independent testing the testing has
 not been under taken.
        I do not blame the NZ chaps for wanting to sell their tired and
 dying end of season bees to anyone willing to pay for them. I am upset
 that it appears that the USDA does not have anyone watching out for
 the best interest of the US honey bees.
        BY the way the Australian and NZ bee industries continue to
demand and lobby for the right to export their honey bees to the United
 States under the provisions of the GATT and NAFTA International Free
 trade agreements. They do so without any demand from US bee
 keepers for the bees. The USDA is right now revisiting the all ready
gutted HONEY BEE ACT of 1922. The act was changed without
 proper notice or any valid risk assessment to allow the NZ bees the
 right of entry to Hawaii in violation of a Hawaii State law that prohibits
the entry of honey bee to Hawaii to protect our mite free bees. This
 action was started while "on the take" ESPY was the USDA chief.
The top honey bee researcher and protector of US honey bees was
hired in the 80's to help the NZ bee industry prepare to export their
honey bees around the world. Objectivity is usually lost when a
person tries to work both sides of the fence, and yet the USDA
 does not see the need to use a peer review group when
contemplating the NZ bees for  import into the United States.
        Regarding the NZ claims about their bees I 'm sure that
they truly believe what they preach. I do question if their process
would be adequate to truly PROVE a negative. When I inquired
 around the world about the requirement s to test our Hawaiian bees
I was told repeatedly that to prove a negative we would
 have to test 100% of our Hawaiian bee colonies. This is the point
 of this posting. WHAT IS REQUIRED under GATT and NAFTA
to prove a scientific negative?? Can any one tell me and would the
same requirements be applicable to NZ with their claims of no
mites, AHB, or EFB. For what it's worth most bee science people
that I have questioned find it hard to believe that EFB could be
totally absent in NZ. and the claim of the eradication AFB in
 NZ bee colonies hardly believable.
        NICK are you still with me since the questions that follow are for
you the UN official PR and industry representative for NZ bee keepers
and the owner of two bee hives. I get the numbers sited below from the
NZ honey bee Industry profile from 1994. Is there a more current
 edition and how would I get a copy? For the record one more time
since you all ways want to mention the disease and pest of honey
 bees not found in NZ I will again print the list of disease and pest of
honey bees that you do have in NZ most of which  and we have NEVER
experienced in Hawaii. Granted there is no scientific data available to
prove that we do not in fact have some of the pests and diseases
 of honey bees.
LIST of pests and diseases found on NZ honey bees
        1. American Foul Brood
        2 KASHMIR BEE VIRUS (deadly to bees with the mites)
        3 Nosema
        4 Chalkbrood
        5 Sacbrood
        6 Cronic BEE Paralysis
        7 Black queen cell
        8 Acute bee paralysis
        9 Cloudy Wing Virus
        10 Bee Virus X
        11 Bee Virus  Y
        12 Filamentous Virus
        13 Amoeba Disease
        14 European foul brood (maybe)
        15 Melittiphis Alvearius
        16 Acarapis externus
        17 Acarapis dorsalis
        18 Neocypholaelaps zealandicus
        19 Melanoius
The NZ folks will quickly want to dismiss me and say that these pests
 and disease are of no economic consequence and their knowledge is
only with bees that are not suffering already with the two blood
sucking mites currently causing stellar losses across mainland USA.
The lobbyist for NZ bees being exported to the USA will also point
to the results of recent testing done by an Australian bee researcher
that most of the virus have been found on USA honey bees, which is
 possible from the honey bees from Canada that the USDA allows to
be imported from Canada. NOTE Canada imports NZ bees and after new
source of origin papers are prepared are then shipped to the USA. Is this
a reason to allow for the continued introduction and spread of these
pest and diseases across the USA? I think not.
        About testing.
NZ reports 25,124 apiaries ( sites where bee are kept) Nick reports that
491 ( 2%) apiaries were inspected in 1995-96 from areas around
dump sites, ports and tourist areas what about way out back
where some of the beekeepers think they have seen EFB? The
reference is made to visual inspections. What does this mean?
Looking at bees as they come and go on the landing board or does
this mean a close brood inspection of every hive in the chosen apiary,
or do you check say 2 % of the hives in the particular apiary? Then we
 are told about testing every queen bee shipper. What percentage of
the hives were inspected in the 509 apiaries? How are feral bees tested?
        These questions are asked with a sincere desire to understand
what will be required for Hawaii to make claims of negative findings if we
are ever able to survey our bees? Sorry for the implications of doubt and
after watching how easily US officials can be BOUGHT by special interest
 groups and being aware of the smoke and mirror techniques available for
clever salesmen to use when trying sell their goods to unsuspecting buyers,
 
I tend to practice BUYER BEWARE  attitudes when some one is trying to
sell me something that is unsolicited and without any benefit to the buyer.
Wishing you the best in your relentless efforts to peddle your bees and I
do
not want them passing through Hawaii for even one minute until the results
 are determined regarding any threat to Hawaii honey bees. Maybe some day
we will know the answers and I doubt the likely hood of the truth ever
being known.
I realize that this is a big money issue for you guys and it is a big
concern
of mine that we protect the Hawaii honey bees.
        Aloha and SOB, SAVE OUR BEES in Americafor the future.
 
                                Walter