3 ms·

> "The only way to destroy the spores is through burning, so we cannot use antibiotics unlike other countries in the world due to market access “Market access”

• throwaway63467 2y ago
  I think it means that e.g. in the EU antibiotics use would make them lose their certification as organic producer, which probably makes a large difference financially.
  • throwup238 2y ago
    That was my first thought too except it’s not organic certification. Anything going to the EU would have to be on the food additive whitelist and be generally recognized as safe in the US, since the antibiotics almost certainly end up in the honey. The penalties for violating that can be pretty severe too. I.e. if one regulator tests and finds the antibiotics, they might temporarily ban imports of NZ honey altogether until the outbreak has passed or the antibiotic is approved.
• fabian2k 2y ago
  It sounds a bit like using antibiotics would mean they can't sell the honey anymore, which sounds somewhat plausible. It could be that this would violate the terms of trade agreements. Maybe the countries using the antibiotics don't export into markets that have rules against them.
  • giantg2 2y ago
    Yes, some antibiotics have been used in markets like China and been found in honey. The antibiotic used is banned in the US due to some sort of negative human impacts. I hear there are other antibiotics approved, but I think it's a patchwork of regulation right now. Also, I question the effectiveness of antibiotics to treat AFB. If the spores remain viable, reinfection in subsequent years or spread still seems possible.
  • rdtsc 2y ago
    Ah, thanks for explaining. That makes sense.
• jonhohle 2y ago
  That’s how I take it. Antibiotics for AFB were approved in the US in 2016 (based on Google-fu), so it may be NZ hasn’t caught up or has other reasons to keep pharmaceuticals out of beekeeping.