INDUSTRY NEWS
Beekeepers prepare for almond pollination season
By Bianca Giggins, Varroa Coordinator at the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council, reviewed by Danny LeFeuvre CEO, AHBIC
AS summer draws to a close, Australia’ s commercial beekeepers are far from the almond orchards, pursuing honey flows across the country. Because Australia doesn’ t offer a single predictable river of nectar, late summer often finds beekeepers studying flowering possibilities, scanning for rainfall and getting their bees to the next honey flow. The bees respond to what the landscape can provide, but the work being carried out now by beekeepers is essential for almond pollination. In late summer, for beekeepers considering almond pollination in August, the most important work is happening now. Beekeepers are trucking their livelihoods long distances to ensure the foragers have all their critical needs met in a continent of extremes. An important part is ensuring bee health by chasing honey flows which not only return a honey crop, but ensure important honeybee nutritional requirements are met. Nutrition sources with good pollen and nectar yields improves honeybee pest and disease resilience and is vital to colony productivity. As Varroa destructor spreads across the country the industry is learning to adjust to the new normal. The 2025 Rabobank report paints a picture that over the next few years we are likely to see a“ significant decline in hive numbers followed by a recovery after six or more years” increasing pressure on beekeepers but also supply of pollination hives.“ This is all calculated with the combined effects of the modelled Varroa mite hive reduction and the strong growth of horticulture acreage," the report states. But is this forecast reality or just overestimations? It is estimated for pollination in August and September 2026, the Australian almond industry will need more than 300,000 bee hives. AHBIC, who collects national hive data from the state regulators, believes 2026 may have an average chance of meeting the almond industry ' s need. In 2025 the recorded commercial sector hive numbers were 624,225 nationally,
noting that 583,056 hives or 93 % of national hive numbers are within Australia’ s mainland eastern states. Despite Varroa mites spreading to these four eastern mainland states since transitioning to management back in September 2023, the registered commercial hive numbers have been marginally sustained. However, between 2024 and 2025 the number of commercially registered beekeepers dropped by 10 % across Queensland, NSW, Victoria and SA, with a trend of registered commercial hive numbers declining in those states by roughly 5 % since July 2024. AHBIC fears these figures could decline further, given that the 2026 season is still to be accounted for this coming July. It is estimated that hive demand for almond pollination will slow from the expediential growth in recent years based on forecasted plantings coming online and the increase in self-compatible varieties reducing demand pressure. National hive numbers collected by AHBIC from the state regulators shows there is still enough hives in the eastern seaboard to meet the current demand of approximately 300,000 hives, assuming all beekeepers participate which we know is not the case. However, since 2023 when Varroa was declared endemic, we have seen a 10 % decline in commercial beekeepers across SA, NSW, Queensland and Victoria, but interestingly commercial hive numbers have remained steady at around 580,000. Focusing on NSW, where Varroa has been established the longest may give us a deeper insight into the early impacts of Varroa. In NSW there has been a 26 % reduction in registered commercial beekeepers between 2023 and 2025. However, commercial hive numbers have remained relatively stable over the same period. Is this the early indications of a structural industry shift as some beekeepers seize the opportunities consuming exiting operators? Another key insight is the Australian Colony loss surveys, a national survey of beekeepers detailing reasons for colony losses, from which data will soon be published by AgriFutures Australia. This survey seeks to understand and track colony losses and their cause as reported by surveyed beekeepers. Early data in this longitudinal study is showing an upward trend in colony losses. In 2024 beekeepers reported a national colony loss of 6.8 % which increased to 10.5 % in 2025. Perhaps unsurprisingly, losses from Varroa are driving some of that upward pressure with beekeepers. In 2025 2.6 % of all colony losses where attributed to Varroa. This early data aligns with overseas experiences which have also been the basis for the 2025 Rabobank report that predicts worse is to come for the industry. Beekeepers have reported management of Varroa as one of the top three challenges facing industry, along with queen failure and starvation in the surveys. Beekeepers continue to show resilience, facing ongoing pressure of prolonged drought, significant fires, damaging floods and pest and disease pressures throughout the last few years. The pressure on beekeepers managing businesses now with Varroa, in addition to those of the past, is compounded by additional management labour and cost for treatments to keep Varroa levels below economic thresholds. The challenge will be to maintain hive numbers in these challenging times and meet increasing demand for pollinators across the nation in the coming years.
industry. australianalmonds. com. au
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