New Organic Treatment for Varroa Mite, Aluen Cap, Arrives to The Caribbean

ARGENTINA DISCOVERS A PRODUCT THAT REVOLUTIONIZES BEEKEEPING, GETTING A 95% OF EFFICACY. TREATING YOUR HIVES WITH ORGANIC IS ALREADY A FACT.

Aluen Cap product – CAP.

Varroa destructor (Acari: Varroidae) is an obligate ectoparasitic mite of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, that feeds primarily on the fat tissue of adults, larvae, and even pupae. This parasite constitutes one of the most severe threats to beekeeping all around the globe.

Aluen CAP consists of four strips made of cellulose impregnated with a solution based on oxalic acid as an active principle. The product was tested in different countries like Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Mexico, New Zealand, France, South Corea, Italy and it is being sold and distributed in Argentina, Uruguay and Chile and soon will be available in the Caribbean islands through the Iyanola Apiculture Collective (IAC), President Richard Matthias. This is possible by the “API Caribe” project, launched at the Argentina Embassy to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean on July 15th 2019. The project is being coordinated by Juan Martin Naveyra of the General Directorate for International Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Argentina, several Ministers of the Caribbean countries as foreign partners and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) as the triangular partner. The implementing partners are LabEA (Laboratorio de Estudios Apícolas, UNS, Argentina), CAP (Cooperativa Apíicola Pampero) and IICA – Sub-regional Office for the Caribbean. The project is aimed to improve the production and productivity of honey and other hive products in Barbados, Dominica, Saint Lucia and Saint Kitts and Nevis, through the support of Argentine specialists in beekeeping, product testing and marketing.

TRIALS PERFORMED SHOWN A HIGH EFFICACY AND NO NEGATIVE EFFECT ON QUEEN, BROOD OR BEES WERE OBSERVED.

The four strips are placed in the brood chamber in a U-shape from the top of the frames. The strips act by contact and last 42 days in the hive. Aluen CAP has some advantages from the current and actual varroa treatments like sublimating and trickling, some of them are, that only one visit to the apiary is needed and that the efficiency achieved on average is 95% regardless there is or not brood presence on the hive. This reduces the number of visits to apiaries to reapply OA treatments, allowing beekeepers to save fuel, labor, and other costs associated with this management.

Use of Aluen strips in hives – CAP.

Another advantage is that the oxalic acid is considered an organic active principle, it naturally occurs on nectar so it could be used during the honey flow. Studies carried out in Argentina demonstrated that the level of oxalic acid did not increase in the hives treated with Aluen CAP during the harvest compared with the control hives.  Oxalic acid has not a LMR established on honey regardless of the legislation, USDA-FDA, EMA, etc. Recently EPA has approved the use of OA with honey supers. This recent ruling for oxalic acid in honey means that the FDA and USDA will not test honey for the presence of oxalic acid, or if oxalic acid is found during the sampling of honey, it will not result in any regulatory action.

Regarding the resistance, scientific evidence has shown that there is not an increase of the dose needed to kill varroa mites. Oxalic acid has been being used since the 80’s and not a single piece of evidence has demonstrated that the mite has some resistance to OA.

Who produces Aluen CAP? The organic product was developed in Argentina by a company called “Cooperativa de Trabajo Apícola Pampero Limitada”.  It works and is linked “Cámara de Apicultores Pampero” (both entities are known as “CAP”). More than 260 beekeepers (107.000 hives) are associated with the Cámara de Apicultores Pampero, which is organized in a 26 beekeepers’ team. Beekeepers are advised by more than 20 experts from the Cooperativa de Trabajo Apícola Pampero Limitada, which is formed by beekeeping technicians and professionals from various careers.

Finally, we can conclude that the product is easy to use, safe for beekeepers, and presents low variability of efficacy between colonies. Moreover, it does not present a risk to colony development and so it can be used to safely reduce the damage done by Varroa mites even during the summer season.

Link: https://cooperativapampero.org/

Bibliography:

• Maggi, M., Tourn, E., Negri, P., Szawarski, N., Marconi, A., Gallez, L., … & Eguaras, M. (2016). A new formulation of oxalic acid for Varroa destructor control applied in Apis mellifera colonies in the presence of brood. Apidologie, 47(4), 596-605.
• Rodríguez Dehaibes, S. R., Meroi Arcerito, F. R., Chávez-Hernández, E., Luna-Olivares, G., Marcangeli, J., Eguaras, M., & Maggi, M. (2020). Control of Varroa destructor development in Africanized Apis mellifera honeybees using Aluen Cap (oxalic acid formulation). International Journal of Acarology, 46(6), 405-408.
• Guest Blogger and Collaborator: Dr. Meghan Milbrath, Michigan State University: https://www.beeculture.com/catch-the-buzz-what-does-the-new-ruling-on-oxalic-acid-in-honeymean/#:~:text=The%20short%20answer%20is%20that,OA%20with%20honey%20supers%20on