Pesticide caution urged to protect bees by California Almond Board

The Almond Board of California announced a new push Thursday to keep pesticides from harming the bees that pollinate the nut trees.

The Modesto-based group released a detailed set of farming practices, many of them already in use, and said it would share them with growers in advance of the February start of pollination.

Chief among the practices is to avoid spraying when the bees are flying amid the blooming trees. If growers still need to use chemicals, such as those that protect the crop against fungi in winter, they should be applied in the late afternoon or evening.

“The chemicals are important, but you have to be very judicious in how you use them,” said Eric Mussen, a recently retired bee expert at UC Davis.

He took part in a media conference call with Richard Waycott, chief executive officer at the board, and Bob Curtis, its associate director for agricultural affairs.

The state produces about 80 percent of the world’s almonds, and demand is booming thanks to studies on the nuts’ health benefits and their many uses. The gross income to Stanislaus County growers surged to $1.13 billion last year, according to its agricultural commissioner. Merced and San Joaquin are big players, too.

None of that happens without the commercial colonies of European honeybees, trucked from many parts of the country to meet the pollination demand in February and March. Some beekeepers have struggled to maintain their numbers because of diseases, mites and other threats to the hives. Drought in California and other places has reduced the flowering plants that sustain the bees.

Experts have said more research is needed on whether pesticides are a major threat, but in the meantime, farmers can help by using them carefully.

The Almond Board drafted the new guide with the help of beekeepers, researchers, the pesticide industry, and state and federal regulators. It stresses communication among the parties in every part of the process, including where to place the bee boxes in the orchard, how to do spraying that cannot be avoided, and how to report possible poisoning of bees.

An abridged version of the guide is in English and Spanish.

Curtis said the pesticide guide meshes with the effort to get growers to plant wildflowers so bees have other food sources just before and after the almond bloom.

Beekeepers make some of their money from honey sales, but rental fees for pollination are a bigger source. Stanislaus County alone reported that this service brought $53.6 million last year, most of it for almonds.

“We wouldn’t have an almond industry if we didn’t have bees,” Waycott said.

Mussen said the pesticide advice could apply to the many other U.S. crops that rely on these pollinators. They number about 90 and account for a third of the nation’s food supply, Waycott said.

Also this week, the Whole Foods Market chain announced an effort to avoid selling fruits, vegetables and flowers produced with harmful pesticides. The threat to bees is among the criteria cited by the Austin-based company, which does not have any stores in the Northern San Joaquin Valley.

“Whole Foods is stepping up, and other retailers should follow suit,” said Paul Towers, spokesman for the Oakland-based Pesticide Action Network, in a news release. “The transparent program gives shoppers more choices about what’s on their food and how it’s grown, including purchasing fruits and vegetables that protect pollinators, farmworkers and children.”

Cascadian Farm, a Washington state-based producer of organic products, announced its own effort on behalf of the bees this week. It urges consumers to eat pesticide-free food, to sow wildflowers and to donate to bee research and conservation.

This story was originally published October 16, 2014 at 1:47 PM.