Last week the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture organized and facilitated a beekeeping workshop in partnership with the PEI Beekeepers’ Association. This workshop took place over 2 days, with several guest speakers, covered a wide range of beekeeping topics and providing the opportunity for new and experienced beekeepers to network and learn from each other. This week’s blog will highlight some of the discussions that took place during the event.

Review of PEIBA Spring Workshop

On April 24^th and 25^th ATTTA, partnered with the PEI Beekeeping Association, hosted a spring beekeeping workshop in Charlottetown. The event was attended by approximately 15 beekeepers from the Island and from New Brunswick, and there was an additional 4 guest speakers in attendance. The event started with a provincial update from Cameron Menzies (provincial apiarist) on the PEI beekeeping industry. In 2025 there was approximately 30 commercial beekeepers managing over 5000 colonies. There was an estimated 4675 PEI hives provided for pollination. Additionally, the province imported 3472 colonies for pollination from Ontario and British Columbia. The average rental price for a PEI colony for pollination in 2025 was $228. For honey production, there was an estimated 4000 honey producing hives with an average of 30lbs per hive last season. During provincial inspections there was no detected American foulbrood or Small Hive Beetle in the province, and detected Varroa mite levels were low (less than 1%). It is worth noting that for imported hives 16% of colonies were inspected, which is in excess of the required 10%. Last winter (2024-2025) the island had a sustainable winter loss of 23% of colonies, and beekeepers are still in the process of determining their winter loss for 2025-2026.

Cameron Menzies, PEI provincial apiarist, providing an industry update at the 2026 Spring Workshop.

Stephen Farmer (Vice President of PEI Beekeepers’ Association) provided an update on behalf of the beekeeping association. Currently, the PEIBA has 114 members which consists of beekeepers, supporters of the industry and students. The province is excited to be hosting the Atlantic Bee Tour this summer, which will take place on July 31^st and August 1^st.

Rémi Padé (Véto-pharma) discussed Apivar 2.0®, Amiflex® and Bactobee®. Only Apivar 2.0® and Amiflex® are registered in Canada both of which have the active ingredient amitraz. Apivar 2.0® has a few important differences from the original Apivar® product. Apivar 2.0® is a larger strip than Apivar®, with a lower concentration of amitraz, which results in an equal delivery of amitraz as the original formulation. The design of the plastic strips has improved tabs for hanging strips between frames, which helps increase contact of the product with bees and mites. Additionally, Apivar 2.0® does not have a withdrawal period prior to placing honey supers. Amiflex®, also containing the active ingredient amitraz (1.99%), is administered to colonies as a gel. Amiflex® works as a flash treatment, which can quickly knock down mite populations, but needs to be complimented with long-term release products as part of an integrated pest management approach.

To conclude the first day of presentations, JoAnn Pineau (Executive Director of the PEI Wild Blueberry Growers’ Association) gave an update on the association’s activities. JoAnn highlighted recent events of the association such as the Maritime Wild Blueberry Conference, upcoming events such as the PEIWBGA field day (details to be determined), and research priorities of the association.

To start the second day of the workshop, Dr. Andrew Byers (ATTTA Program Lead) discussed the ATTTA program, and highlighted some of ATTTA’s research and extension work. There are several upcoming training events that will be of interest to beekeepers including: New Brunswick Beekeepers’ Association Workshop (Memramcook – May 23), Queen Production Workshop (Bible Hill – June 17), and a summer technical session (Parrsboro – June 29).

Kayla Gaudet (ATTTA) gave a presentation on ATTTA’s Regional Varroa Mite, and amitraz efficacy testing for the region. This upcoming season will be the third and final year of data collection for this project. Additionally, Kayla discussed Varroa mite monitoring and the accuracy of both alcohol washes and sticky boards. The take home message is that monitoring (washes, sticky boards, or a combination of the two techniques) is essential for a successful Varroa mite management program.

Andrew Byers then discussed Tropilaelaps mites including the biology of the mite and the threat the mite presents to the Canadian beekeeping industry. Overall, there is still a lot of unknowns around the risk and management of Tropilaelaps mites to the beekeeping industry. ATTTA will be publishing a blog and factsheet on Tropilaelaps mites in the near future to share current knowledge of the biology of the mite and current research regarding monitoring and management of this pest which is happening globally.

Kayla Gaudet presented on wax moth management. Wax moth is primarily an issue with stored beekeeping equipment but can also be a problem with weaker colonies. The moths prefer infesting stored combs that are not actively populated by bees. Cultural practices are one of the most useful tools for beekeepers to prevent wax moth infestations. This includes proper storage of used hive equipment and hive products. All hive equipment should be stored in a closed building or storage container and should not be left outside.

Andrew Byers provided an update on growing degree days research, tools and applications for wild blueberry pollination. Across Nova Scotia and New Brunswick there is a network of weather stations which provide real-time data on weather conditions, and provide the required data for predicting the growing degree days of wild blueberries for a localized area. The PEI wild blueberry industry is aiming towards having networked weather stations installed on the island in the future, which provide a great benefit for determining wild blueberry plant development and planning for pollination.

To conclude the workshop, Kayla Gaudet discussed queen production and queen banking. Kayla discussed past research regarding indoor and outdoor queen banking in Canada, and within the Maritimes. The ATTTA team has been working towards doing an outdoor queen banking trial, with plans in place to set-up a trial this coming fall.

Thank you to all beekeepers and speakers who participated in last week’s workshop. The event was an excellent opportunity to learn and engage with beekeepers. The ATTTA team wishes all PEI beekeepers an enjoyable and successful 2026 beekeeping season.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

The 2026 pollination season is fast approaching. Across the Maritime region, beekeepers are starting to prepare for the movement of thousands of honey bee colonies to wild blueberry fields. This week’s blog post will highlight some of the expectations of the 2026 pollination season and provide key future considerations for beekeepers and wild blueberry growers.

Looking to the 2026 Pollination Season and Beyond

Over the past month or more, beekeepers have been working hard to care for colonies. When weather has permitted, beekeepers have been assessing winter loss, checking food stores, feeding if necessary, and are now starting the process of balancing colonies for the coming pollination season. Winter losses and spring management will determine the number of colonies available for pollination. The hope is that the region’s pollination capacity this spring has increased in comparison to last. Under ideal conditions, around 35,000 Maritime colonies will be sent to wild blueberry pollination for the 2026 season. Breaking this optimistic goal down by province, Nova Scotia may approach 20,000 colonies for pollination this spring. New Brunswick is well placed to have 10,000 colonies available, and PEI could approach 5,000 colonies. These speculative numbers will depend on winter losses and will only be determined after blueberry bloom.

The demand for wild blueberry pollination remains high across the Maritime region. Last year, New Brunswick imported over 30,000 honey bee colonies to provide pollination services, Prince Edward Island imported nearly 3,500 colonies, and Nova Scotia imported 864 colonies. It is expected that each Maritime province will import an equal, or increased, number of colonies to help meet the pollination demand in 2026. Nova Scotia may extend the Pollination Pilot Project, introduced in 2025, with possibly an expanded number of pollinating colonies permitted to enter the province in 2026. The other two Maritime provinces may have an increase in demand for imported colonies as is often seen when there is confidence in a robust market price for blueberries. This strong demand for pollination units sees blueberry producers increasingly looking outside the region to meet their need for pollination units. As blueberry producers lean more on imported colonies, as well as non-apis pollinators, the market share held by Maritime beekeepers is worth exploring.

According to a leading business magazine, the Harvard Business Review, in any business, market share is the main determinant for profitability due to economies of scale, market power, and the quality of management. Market share is simply defined as:

Often the individual sales may be a single company selling a specific product into a larger market, but this can also apply to a market sector. A relatable example is the report by Stats Canada that, in 2024, lowbush blueberry production was 94,111 metric tons against an overall fruit production for the country of 930,982 metric tons. This indicates that the lowbush blueberry sector represented a 10.1% market share of overall fruit production in Canada. This sort of model can be applied to other aspects of wild blueberry production and commercial beekeeping.

When looking at pollination for wild blueberries, the market share held by beekeepers has changed over the years. An interesting example can be found when looking at some statistics from the New Brunswick wild blueberry industry generally and the current Wild Blueberry Pollination Strategy specifically. As reported in the executive summary of the strategy¹, on average for the period from 2018 – 2023, New Brunswick beekeepers supplied 9,500 colonies out of the total 32,500 used for wild blueberry pollination (29.23% market share). The projections in the strategy estimate that by 2029, New Brunswick beekeepers will supply 17,000 of the 57,000 honey bee colonies required for wild blueberry pollination. This would maintain market share at roughly 29.82%. Currently, when reviewing the estimates of the 2025 season, New Brunswick colonies only made up 9,958 of the 40,300 bee hives used overall. This is a 24.72% market share. This indicates that New Brunswick beekeepers have lost overall market share and are not matching the trajectory expected to maintain the estimated market share proposed in the pollination strategy.

The circumstances in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island differ somewhat from those discussed above. The planned increase in blueberry production acreage for NB, with more need for pollination services, is not matched by the other two Maritime provinces. Nonetheless, there is pressure across the industry for production efficiencies, gained in part, through increased yields for existing acreage. To achieve this increase in yield, more pollination units will be required. The resulting increased demand for pollination services in Nova Scotia is evidenced by the importation of 864 colonies into the province in 2025 through the Pollination Pilot Project. The number of colonies imported into NS is likely to only increase for 2026 and into the future. Even with NS having record breaking hive numbers in the fall of 2025 (approximately 30,000) the importation will decrease the market share of for the provinces beekeepers by an estimated 5 – 7% for this season compared to prior years. Prince Edward Island has seen a slight downward trend in the number of hives managed in the province for the past several years. So, if demand remains constant on the Island, market share for the province’s beekeepers will be lost equivalent to the decrease in provincial hive numbers.

When discussing the pollination market share, it is important to recognize that non-apis pollinators, such as bumble bees and alfalfa leaf cutter bees, are a growing portion of the market. Each year an increasing number of bumble bee quads are being imported into the Maritime region, and, although the specific number of imported quads is not recorded, it is recognized that bumble bees and other managed non-apis pollinators are gaining market share of the pollination industry. The strong market share of non-apis pollinators can be seen in New Brunswick with the province projecting that by 2029, bumble bees and alfalfa leaf cutter bees will make up 24% of the total pollination capacity.

Globally, the demand for wild blueberries, and, therefore, pollination services, remains high. More acres going into production and increasing production efficiencies will also push demand for pollination of wild blueberries. Market share is only one consideration, especially as there is still a strong, growing need for honey bee colonies in the region. With this, comes opportunities for beekeepers and sector growth. Loss of market share may be inevitable as, in some areas, factors like forage availability, limit growth capacity of commercial beekeepers. This will mean that the demand cannot be met from within the Maritime region. Alternatively, the advantages of market share, such as economy of scale and the associated demonstration of the quality of management, should not be ignored. The other important aspect of market share is market power. Currently the strong relationship between the Maritime beekeeping and wild blueberry industries is due to local honey bees being a foundational pollination provider. As the share of the market alters due to importation of honey bee colonies, and with the expanded use of non-apis pollinators, market power may shift. It is yet to be seen how the 2026 pollination season will unfold but the hope is that local honey bees will perform, as always, to support a successful wild blueberry production season.

1. 1. New Brunswick Wild Blueberry Pollination Strategy (Executive Summary) (2024) https://www2.gnb.ca/content/dam/gnb/Departments/10/pdf/Agriculture/WildBlueberries-BleuetsSauvages/nb-wild-blueberry-pollination-strategy.pdf

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

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