In addition to housing the world's largest bee, Alberta is also the 5th largest honey producing region in the world at present, producing on average 30.5 million pounds each year (Alberta agriculture and rural development) primarily from wildflower, canola, clover, and alfalfa nectar. Commercial beekeepers from the region supply pollination services to blueberries right next door in British Colombia and to canola crops in the southern part of the province. Fairview, Alberta is home to an internationally recognized commercial beekeeping certificate program, offered by Grand Prairie Regional College that provides 11 months of education and paid work experience focused on training individuals for careers in the bee industry. This program originally was offered from 1981 to 1999 and only recently resumed in 2012, currently instructed by Eric Stromgren. Information on the course can be found via their link below.
But wait! There's more! Albert is also home to Beaverlodge Research Farm and the Canadian National Bee Diagnostic Center (NBDC), a facility born in 2012 via collaborative efforts between Grand Prairie Regional College and the national Beaverlodge Research Farm. This is, after all, the reason I'm bragging about Alberta on BeeBugs. If you're a Canadian beekeeper and want to know what's bugging your bees, you can send a sample to the NBDC. They offer a range of diagnostic services including ultrastructure of comb and brood as well as molecular diagnostics. They operate out of a fantastic, modern research lab located on the Beaverlodge Research Farm. offering microscopy and molecular diagnostic services to bee keepers interested to identify virus, bacteria, fungi and protozoa micro-parasites in their bees. A link to their website is available by clicking their logo:
So, if you're considering a trip to Canada, why not consider Alberta and go on a quest for current and historical bee-centric sights, eh?
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