Rabat – Morocco’s National Office for Food Safety (ONSSA) has launched a field investigation into the disappearance of bees in several regions across Morocco.
ONSSA ruled out the possibility of a “disease” as a priori cause of bees disappearance in certain regions.
The food safety office emphasized that it is carrying out the survey in collaboration with the Moroccan Interprofessional Federation of Beekeeping (FIMAP). The survey is part of the monitoring of the state of health of apiaries across Morocco, noted the statement.
The operation came following beekeepers‘ report on desertion of bees, ONSSA’s statement said, stressing that the objective of the survey is to determine the extent of the unprecedented phenomenon to identify its causes.
The first results following visits to approximately 23,000 hives showed that the extent of desertion varies from one region to another.
ONSSA believes the situation is new, adding that tests and analysis in laboratories formally exclude that this disappearance is linked to a disease.
The food office emphasized its determination to continue field investigations with all partners to identify the real causes of the disappearance of bees from some regions across Morocco.
ONSSA identified the phenomenon as “Colony Collapse Syndrome,” which it said is also observed in other countries across the world, including Europe, and America.
“Research attributes this to several factors,” ONSSA said, citing lack of rainfalls, decrease in quantity and quality of food available for bees, and the state of health of apiaries.
