Not sure if ITLD will get this before he goes on his travels, but I recall somewhere around page 20 ish that he said that he was importing queens as well/or packages or both from NZ. Which of these will end up in Hereford/Gloucestershire ?
I am glad that the Co-Op now have someone reading this thread, as well as a 'Spy-In-Our-Midst' forwarding everything....I wonder who that is ??! Bl**dy turncoat
Anyway, in spite of all that ITLD has said, the FUNDAMENTAL issue has still not been tackled...that of such a large volume of bees being imported into the UK and the DOUBLE STANDARDS of the Co-Op for endorsing this when they also support Plan B.
ITLD can't defend that in my view (nor would I expect him to has he has taken the Co-Ops shilling), but neither can the Co-Op.
This thread has evolved far further than I ever expected it to, and, writing this on a Sunday night bottling honey produced by local British bees, I really do think that, with the end consumer firmly in mind, that they would be very concerned as to the real issues at stake here, not withstanding the whole bee import issue, and that that ITLD mentioned about full frame nucs coming in UNDER THE RADAR from Europe.
I continue my campaign to raise awareness of this...am awaiting a number of responses from a few parties here and there, and will show my hand as and when I am able to.
I appreciate that a few people as a % of the forum have commented here, hopefully far more have read the thread, and I hope that everyone is discussing this with their friends and families and getting them to discuss it with their friends too. Some of the issues that have come to light here, I am certain, will bite us in the $rse sooner or later....it comes down to us all as RESPONSIBLE INDIVIDUALS and BEEKEEPERS, whether a newbeek, 1 hive, 10 or 100 to start asking about the source of their nucs from the retailer....and don't accept no for an answer.
Meanwhile I need to go back and label a load of jars and work on some of the 'British Bee' labels myself and Friar Tuck are pulling together for the forum beeks to use in due course.
regards and please continue to support this thread and communicate with friends and family...
Somerford
1. I have already answered this. Only queens are coming from NZ this year.
2. Your turncoat is the exact oposite. They are only letting the Co-op know about opposition, not about the posts that are not fully supportive of your position. Still do not know who it is btw. Will be visiting Manchester soon, might find out then.
3. Stuck record. I have explained in detail why these bees. The pics might shed some light on it if you still believe only in the saintly A.m.m. they want to encourage beekeepers to start. These gentle bees are to assist with that on visits and demos. they are not for sale outwith the venture. yes, there are lots more of the queens coming in to other people, but none of the ones in the Co-op venture will be for sale outwith it. Getting people started and showing them it does not HAVE to be done with grumpy bees MUST be a good thing and as such is wholly in accordance with the spirit of plan B.
Large volume of bees? It will not be 10% of the imports this spring that *I* know of................no idea the overall total, but it could be 10,000 plus? Forget the official figures, they are just the tip of the iceberg.
4. Me taken the Co-ops shilling? or maybe they have taken mines??? lol.................sling mud if you wish. I have a thick hide and am impervious to it.
5. Your anti foreign stance is very plain. However in the world you live in today your borders are from the Baltic to Cyprus, from Portugal to Romania. It is not UK/England/Gloucestershire/Cirencester/4 Anystreet. At least from outwith these shores you should have a health certificate. Unnotified shipments have the same status health wise as internal UK shipments. That is NO official health status.
6. Yes, I know you are organising a campaign. The Co-op knows it, and I *assume* it is your campaign that two members of the media have been in touch about. I await their next follow up, as it seems more likely they will end up running a positive story, as happened with the Scottish unit. You are indeed apparently raising awareness of the project. Good. The worst publicity one can get is no publicity at all.
Quite plainly you have a fixed mind about all this and are not really here to find out............your claim to have 'pieced together the whole picture' back at post one, and jumped to conclusions based on rumour, heresay, and assumptions mixed with scant facts really says it all. You did not have the full picture, and now I am offering it to you, you do not want it. If you think I am the kind of person who takes ANYONES shilling then you are again working on assumptions in the comfortable isolation of never having met me, not seen how I work, and seemingly no wish to. ( 'Nothing to gain' comment in response to the offer to visit.)
A good number of people are coming back to me privately on this scheme now, mostly wanting to find out more, and several wanting to come to visit.
I head off on my travels tomorrow afternoon. Lots to do. Will still answer questions though.
