Ontario Beekeepers' Association, Technology Transfer Program

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The Ontario Beekeepers’ Association (OBA), Technology Transfer Program (TTP) was established in the early 1990’s by Dr. Medhat Nasr. The mandate of the TTP is to conduct research for Ontario’s beekeeping industry, to facilitate a honey bee breeding program in Ontario and to transfer information, skills and methodologies to the beekeepers.

The OBA Tech-Transfer Program is unique because it operates directly for the beekeepers of Ontario, focusing on issues which are of importance to them. Base funding is received from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The beekeepers also donate funds for research, however; additional funding is sought from agencies such as the Agricultural Adaptation Council. The focus is Integrated Pest Management. A large component of this is the breeding program. Tech-Transfer works individually with the bee breeders to assist them with their stock selection. They also test a variety of treatments for the control of varroa mites. The goal is to be pro-active and to limit the number of treatments that must be applied to the bee hive each year.

The current TTP research team members, Janet Tam, Melanie Kempers, Alex Maranduik and Devan Rawn, are based in Guelph. Collaborators include the Provincial Apiarist, the University of Guelph and co-operating beekeepers.

Educational, hands-on workshops are held every year regarding introductory beekeeping, integrated pest management in beekeeping and introductory queen rearing.

The results of the work conducted by the OBA TTP is presented at the annual OBA meetings, to local beekeepers associations within Ontario, to other beekeeper associations in Canada and the US, and to school and community groups with an interest in honey bees.

Current Events

2010-07-12

Janet, Mel and all workshop participants would like to throw out a very big THANK YOU to CentaurVA, Bee Wise Bee Supplies and Better Bee Supplies for their generous donations to our beekeeping workshops. The donations are very much appreciated!

2010-06-30

Workshops have finsished. Thanks to all the hosting organizations and the dedicated volunteers that make the workshops a success! Workshops will run again next spring. If interested in hosting a workshop, please contact us at obatechtransfer@rogers.com to discuss possible dates and locations. If you are interested in attending a workshop, check back early next year for the posting of the dates and register early! They fill up quick.

Janet and Mel would like to welcome Alex and Devan to the team. Our new "Bee Boys" are getting accustomed to getting hot, dirty and stung on a regular basis. Check out the "Meet the Team" section for further information about the team.