> What is so bad about a beekeeper choosing a non-chemical approach,
> breeding for resistance in bees for varroa?

I think the above is needed. I myself have received 25 Russian/Russian
queens from the Russian queen breeder program last month. I have worked with
survivors for years however I have not found the combination needed for
**ME**  to drop treatments.

> Is it offending to you in some manner?
>

Certainly not! However I am a realist and successful business man. I make a
living from bees. Each hive is a production unit. Just keeping the hive
around all season costs money. Actually turning the office lights on each
day takes capital.

Some survivor colonies are what I call dinks. If they survive varroa but
will not produce honey or strong enough to split or sell into pollination
then I depopulate and replace with a strong unit. Those on the list which
make a living from bees know exactly what I am saying. Those which don't
might not understand the tough bottom line involved with making a living
from bees.

The "live and let die' method makes only sense to me when searching for a
breeder queen. No place in the commercial apiary.

> I’m not up on current figures, but with about 2.4 million bee colonies in
> the USA, is there data that shows 2 million colonies directly involved in
> food production?

There are no reliable stats!

> Please explain how breeding for resistance is ignoring any bee problem?

If those searching for the perfect bee find the bee then I will buy queens
and convert. Commercial beeks are constantly testing queens advertised as
resistant to varroa etc. In Florida last year I looked at the 2007 queens
from most of the queen producers. New methods of control.  So far we have
not found a bee which can survive varroa untreated (in yards of 24-40 hives
with queens from other sources) and produce up to our expectations. The
Russian/Russian is close but when out crossing occurs resistance drops.

Until the right bee is found most commercial operations are forced to
monitor and treat for many problems. I am one of the few which keeps an open
mind to new methods. Most commercial operators see leave alone beekeeping as
unsustainable and a quick road to bankruptcy!

bob

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