James Fischer wrote:
> Wow, what a week for proving that "common sense" is anything but common!<

> The drug-resistant strain of T.B. is really nasty.   Rifampicin is one of
the few drugs left that can fight it...<

The process of realization sometimes can be negatively exciting. I
personally wouldn't know anything about Rifampicin before it show up in this
Bulgarian beekeeping product.
Here, from information's I gathered up until now, I can say that Rifampicin
is obviously used as ingredient of number other veterinary drugs - my
question is: which one, how many - and in which countries? Did anyone know
something?
I am sure that lot of people on this List at least can ask some veterinarian
friend(s) about this.
Knowing that Bulgarians usually are not "inventors of hot water" I can
suppose that this antibiotic is registered for veterinarian purposes in at
least one another, much more powerful country (Russia maybe?)
Also I can say that I have respect for their considerations connected with
metod of applying. They obviously had taking care of antibiotic ending in
hive products and was prone to invent another way of application, lot less
dangerous than, for instance, dusting.
BUT, I have problem with respecting their prescription of using the drug in
preventive.
In the raport of their first research, required for registration purposes,
they didn't find any residue of Rifampicin, 10 days after application, BUT I
do not believe in that, because I do not know the methods they were using
for testing that. For me it is impossible to expect that if you put
something strange in the hive, that nothing of it will be left, or in this
case, that bees will clean it totally. This is specially important if you
know, as I know at the present time, that bacteria's build resistance to
Rifampicin very, very fast - and that is the reason why Rifampicin is never
applied alone, but together with other antibiotics - in any case, including
humans (T.B.).
Also, I am almost sure that nobody knows for how long Rifampicin is active
in honey or wax!
I must point out another problem: in my country, also in neighbouring
countries, and I am sure in others, veterinarians are usually promoters of
using drugs instead no-drug methods when dealing with livestock illnesses.
Most of them had never been closer than 2 meters from any beehive, or they
never opened a hive in their life, but they are usually obliged from
governments to gave advises, prescriptions or permissions. Therefore I am
not surprised when one of our veterinarians stated that without antibiotics
beekeeping will be ruined in one year!
Do I need to look surprised when after few years Rifampicin will be
officially registered and advised for using in beekeeping in my country or
Your's? No I do not think so - because veterinarians will not ask us for
opinion. So, I must agree with You:  "common sense" is anything but common!