uropean governments have banned the use of three common neonicotinoid pesticides due to insufficiently identified risks to bees. This policy decision is controversial given the absence of clear consistency between toxicity assessments of those substances in the laboratory and in the field.

The major reason for this ban is the release of dusts during sowing, that are toxic to honey bees.

A joint research project on the function and structure of endocrine and exocrine glands of honeybees has been carried out in collaboration with Prof. Pierre Cassier

The ectoparasitic mite, Varroa destructor, shifted host from the eastern honeybee, Apis cerana, to the western honeybee, Apis mellifera.

The risk exposure of bee colonies to the toxicity of systemic neonicotinoid insecticides was assessed. Various methods of chemical prevention of commercial winter and spring oilseed rape crops in field-realistic conditions were taken into account in the assessment.

The Swiss population of Apis mellifera mellifera is taken as a case study.

Varroa destructor is a parasitic mite of the Asian honey bee, Apis cerana. Owing to host
range expansion, it now plagues Apis mellifera, the world’s principal crop pollinator and honey producer. Evidence from A. mellifera in far-eastern Russia, Primorsky (P) originating from honey bees imported in the mid 1800’s, suggested that many colonies were resistant to V. destructor.

For the control measures, results showed an overall awareness of the usefulness of biosecurity measures in beekeeping which we compare across regions.

One of the main priorities of the European Commission is to reduce by 50% the use of chemical pesticides by 2030, especially the most hazardous ones.

Current approaches to risk assessment in bees do not take into account co-exposures from multiple stressors. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is deploying resources and efforts to move towards a holistic risk assessment approach of multiple stressors in bees..