"The tobacco industry proved that nicotine didn't cause lung cancer by
showcasing a bunch of old guys who had smoked their whole life with no ill
effects. Could canola be the ancient cigarette addict of the beekeeping
world?"

That might be an accurate comparison if the tobacco companies had been able
to trot out an entire subset of smokers - say, everyone of German descent -
and said, see, none of these people have ever gotten sick from cigarettes.

We're talking about an entire industry here, canola, almost all of which is
both genetically modified and treated with neonics. Canola honey is the
primary crop for Canadian beekeepers, and you just don't see evidence,
anecdotal or otherwise, of canola killing bees.

Unlike those occasional people who defy the odds by smoking for 60-70 years
without apparent harm, canola is actually pretty good evidence for the
relative safety of neonics.

As for the continued demonization of pesticide companies, it is important to
realize that they do not exist in a vacuum. They only produce these products
because farmers want pest protection, just as they produce miticides to meet
the demand of beekeepers.
 
Eugene Makovec
Missouri USA

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