Grain Farmers of Ontario has sent a letter to it's members advising that if they host beekeepers they should protect themselves.
GFO says that protection should include seeking legal advice and having a signed contract with the beekeeper that protects the grower and the farm.
The letter stems from the new neonic-treated seed regulations and what the GFO calls the implication of the class action suit initiated by the Sierra Club and beekeepers, among other things.
The letter to producers includes a memo from a law firm suggesting the new seed regulations will leave most grain farmers with no alternative but to return to traditional spraying for pest control and crop protection.
Those applications may be more harmful to bees than the seed-based treatment that has been banned.
The law firm says beekeepers should be made aware of and accept that risk before they are allowed to place their hives on a grain farmer's property.
That's where some form of written documentation is being recommended where the beekeeper accepts all risks to the hive and bees placed on a grain farmer's property and releases the grain farmer from any liability.
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GFO Chair Mark Brock says it's based on a resolution from the organisation's semi-annual meeting asking for a toolbox growers can use in working with local beekeepers.
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/BROCK-Letter-1.mp3"][/audio]
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GFO Chair Mark Brock says that advice comes out of concerns raised by the organisation's members.
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/BROCK-Letter-2.mp3"][/audio]
