Bayer Animal Health - International Animal Health Portal 2005 0046 E Page 2
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only be used if they had been obtained from a pharmacy on presentation of a
prescription or if the beekeeper had bought the product directly from the veterinary
surgeon. This prescription-only status was intended to ensure that a diagnosis of
"varroasis" had been made by a veterinary surgeon and that the use of the veterinary
product was considered necessary from a veterinary viewpoint before such powerful
veterinary medicines were put into action.
For Bayvarol® Strips, the fact that pharmacy-only status has been granted means that
the good tolerability and efficacy of the product have been proven. The other major
advantage of the pharmacy-only status is that it paves the way for closer
communication with the beekeeper, making it possible to put across the message about
how the product should be used in a more "consumer-friendly" manner very much in
keeping with the principles of Responsible Care for medicinal products.
Good Beekeeping Practice
Varroasis control in accordance with Good Beekeeping Practice involves the kind of
integrated control programs that have been recommended for years by beekeeping
associations and scientists alike, including the correct use of registered bee treatments.
Besides providing its two authorized bee treatments, Bayer HealthCare is also taking
additional measures to safeguard bee health as well as conducting research in the field
of varroasis treatment and small hive beetle control. One such measure is Bayer
HealthCare's participation in the "Round Table" dialog forum in Germany, a platform
to support the ongoing exchange of opinions between beekeepers, agriculture, science
and industry. In this context, Bayer HealthCare actively supports the Round Table's
initiative to document the development of bee colonies throughout the Federal
Republic of Germany using a standardized format as part of a long-term monitoring
project. This is intended to provide a better basis for analyzing the causes of any bee
damage or population losses that occur. "Bayer HealthCare also supports external
research projects and makes inventories relating to the aforementioned documentation
available to beekeepers without charge," added Dr. Sabine Ippendorf.
Hard-working bees
In Germany, around 100,000 beekeepers are responsible for almost a million bee
colonies. Each colony harvests around 15-20 kilograms honey per year, i.e. 20,000
tons. This quantity accounts for only 25 percent of domestic honey consumption,
however. Statistically speaking, each German eats approximately 1.2 kilograms honey
per year, making them the number one consumers of honey in the world.
