Project Apis m. began funding beekeeper-approved, applied research 20 years ago. Since then, PAm has also spearheaded programs to put bee forage back on the landscape and provide beekeeper-facing resources and training for emerging problems like Tropilaelaps. We are excited to launch a new program, The Bee Health Regulatory Consortium (BHRC), that is a direct answer to beekeepers’ lament that the pipeline for new tools seems too long, slow and empty. Izzy Hill, PAm’s new Director of Regulatory Affairs, brings extensive experience with both the EPA and USDA and is well positioned to lead the consortium.
“Even when new innovations are being developed, you’re not always seeing products get into the hands of the beekeeper. We can offer some help to these businesses with big hearts that just want to help support bee health, but they don’t quite have the background to do it efficiently and cost-effectively,” said Hill. “That’s where we’re trying to fill in the gap. How do we take a good product that is coming out of the research labs and support these businesses to get them across the finish line.”
BHRC aims to reduce costs and expedite the regulatory process for safe, new bee health products. Streamlining regulatory processes has the potential to get innovative products into the hands of beekeepers to tackle threats to bee colonies in a timely manner. It can easily take years for a single product to get approved, with the costs of data requirements and fees in some cases being so burdensome it can send businesses into bankruptcy. These risks are especially pronounced for bee health products, given the small size of the market. BHRC recognizes these issues and seeks to provide shared know-how in what is required for product approval at federal and state/provincial levels, both in the U.S and Canada. Further, by working together across multiple companies, this will better support alternative funding strategies to reduce the regulatory approval costs faced by any one company.
Initial meetings in California
BHRC already made headway in March, when Hill, PAm board member Matt Beekman, and the USDA met with the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CalDPR) and the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Secretary Karen Ross. Both meetings were productive, and two products that treat varroa mites have been expedited since. “California is one of the more complex states in which to get a product registered. And it’s a huge state for beekeeping. So, getting new products registered in California is of paramount importance. Both CalDPR and CDFA have been incredibly supportive, and we are thankful for their attention to BHRC and this new initiative.”
Watch our webinar to learn more about how BHRC can help accelerate bee health product registration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cjm0-i0F-Ms
