Grain Farmers of Ontario Releases Its Pollinator Health Blueprint

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The Grain Farmers of Ontario has submitted to the government its 10-point, four-year “pollinator health blueprint,” which includes a focus on increasing pollinator habitat, increasing grower education and decreasing neonicotinoid use.

Bees in a honeycombThe Blueprint identifies five key areas to “enhance the health” of pollinators in Ontario:

  • Habitat and nutrition;
  • Pesticide exposure;
  • Diseases and parasites;
  • Communication between beekeepers and farmers, and;
  • Verification and collection protocols for insects.

Of note, there is a commitment to establish one million acres of self-sustaining pollinator habitat on public and farm properties across the province and to reduce the risk of bee exposure to neonicotinoids as well as reduce the volume of neonicotinoid seed treatment in Ontario.

Based on a 2016 to 2019 timeline, the blueprint also includes training for farmers and beekeepers, added transparency on treated and non-treated seed prices, and enhanced bee health surveillance.

Download a PDF of the Pollinator Health Blueprint here.

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