Catherine Young got into the bee business six years ago.
She began with just two hives. At its peak, that number had grown to 28.
But a cold spring that reduced pollination season, a rainy summer that washed away nectar and a long winter reduced the Waterloo beekeeper’s hives back to two.
A strong hive can be split among others to rebuild, but with losses that large, she has had to turn to buying bees from breeders.
According to Jim Coneybeare, president of the Ontario Beekeepers’ Association, the losses could take up to two years for some businesses to recover from.
For some, recovery may not be an option at all.
“It’s not necessarily as financially feasible if you’re having to repopulate your whole yard every year,” Young said.
It’s possible that honey prices could increase as a result of the hives losses, but Coneybeare isn’t so sure.
“It’s more a situation of whether or not honeybees will be available for local pollination,” he said.
To him, it is more likely that prices of locally grown fruits and vegetables would increase, instead.
