Open Letter to Europe

Dear Member of the European Parliament,

On this World Bee Day, appointed by the United Nations (https://www.un.org/en/observances/bee-day), I am writing to you on behalf of the International Association of the European Dark Bee (SICAMM) and its Member Associations who are widely spread throughout Europe. I trust that you are aware of the vital roles of bees and other pollinators in ensuring global food security and nutrition. As concerned citizens passionate about conservation and the precious biodiversity of Europe, we are reaching out to inform you about the challenges facing our native subspecies of honey bees in Europe. We hope to enlist your support for stronger protection of these honey bees, natural European resources, to preserve biodiversity and to help to move beekeeping towards more sustainable methods.

The Dark European Honey Bee, Apis mellifera mellifera (Amm) has evolved, as have the other European honeybee subspecies, over millennia, to thrive in the climatic and environmental conditions in different parts of Europe. The Dark European Honey Bee was the dominant honey bee subspecies until recent decades in North West Europe. It is now under threat in its native geographical range primarily due to the importation of non-native honey bees and modern hybrids. Unlike other agricultural plants and animals, where hybridization can be used to advantage, the reproductive system of the honey bee, with queens mating freely with numerous drones in an area, quickly results in random hybridization of the local population, to no-one’s advantage. Native species of honey bees thrive best in its original habitat. Recent scientific studies in Europe have shown that safeguarding the genetic purity of honey bees and promoting sustainable environments for their survival is crucial.

After 30 years of pioneering conservation work in different parts of Europe, we are now experiencing a genuine renewal of interest in the survival of native honey bees, and the number of beekeepers and other persons supporting it is increasing steadily. The time is ripe to highlight the conservation of threatened honey bee subspecies and to develop a more sustainable approach to beekeeping.

We would appreciate your support for the conservation efforts and the protection of our European native honey bees. i.e. the long-term survival of the native bees in their native geographical range. We would also be pleased to receive information on any upcoming initiatives that could assist our efforts. Please send your response and any information via email to info@sicamm.org.

We look forward to your cooperation on this important issue. We are at your disposal should further clarification be required.

Yours sincerely,

John Greenaway

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John Greenaway

President of SICAMM, on behalf of the SICAMM Main Board and Member Associations