Oh Bees!

So, just to be clear, I am not a beekeeper.  I know nothing about bees, or how to look after them.  But eventually, I'm going to have to learn because my husband is in the process of becoming a beekeeper and he promises that he's going to drag me along with him!  (Willingly, of course!)

Unless you've had your head under a rock for most of this year, you will have at least heard about colony collapse and bee die-off and how everyone seems to be pointing their fingers at seed grain (corn, soybeans, wheat) covered in pesticides as the #1 culprit.

Once again, I am not a beekeeper; I am not a biologist; I am not a farmer; I really haven't done any research into this; my husband's bees have been unaffected by this whole thing; and in all honesty, I don't know what's going on, or who to believe.  But this sure is happening:

The OBA (Ontario Beekeepers Association) has started a petition to right out ban Neonicotinoid (the pesticide in question).  Their petition can be found here.

In response to this petition, the GFO (Grain Farmers of Ontario) have started a similar campaign asking the government to not be too hasty in their decision because there's still a lot of research to be done.  Their view on things can be found here.

Both organizations make reasonable arguments, but for now, I think I'll just sit on the sidelines and watch things unfold.