The prevalence of varroa mite among bees in the US is causing concern among fruit growers.

Key export crops such as apples, cherries, strawberries and cranberries could all be affected to varying degrees if a new treatment to control the bee parasite is not found, or a new mite-resistant bee developed.

Beehives are being shipped around the vast country to areas where they are required and even imported from as far away as Australia in order to meet fruit-crop pollination needs. “We’ve never seen a crisis of this magnitude of loss of bees,” American Beekeeping Federation president David Ellingson said.

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