Mikkola Family Farm & Apiary
56 Mikkola Road P3Y 1A5 Lively, ON, Canada

IS IT TIME TO HANG UP MY SMOKER? Many Canadian beekeepers are deciding to give up. As we reported last week, beekeepers are facing unprecedented die off of thei...r bees this year. First believed to be only in Southern Ontario, we now know that there are huge losses right across Canada. Within the last few days, several large and medium sized beekeepers from across Canada, have conferred over the situation of this massive loss of bees. No matter what the cause is, it leaves hundreds of pollinators and honey producers without enough bees to carry out their business this spring. George Scott, a life-long beekeeper, speaks out about the dire situation, "Many small and medium sized operations have suffered up to 90% loss. We understand that some very large-scale Niagara beekeepers are coming out of winter with their lowest mortality ever, but their pollination capacity cannot compensate for the substantial loss of services reported by smaller operations in Quebec, Ontario and Alberta. Beekeepers across Canada are our friends, and we feel the reality of their pain and frustration. Some beekeepers that I talked to have decided to close down permanently while others will spend the time, effort, and money to render their dead outs and to store their valuable equipment for another time when beekeeping makes sense," said George Scott of Niagara Beeway. "Not one of them is reinvesting this year to meet the expanding demand for pollination services and honey. Some are just walking away from the entire industry and their operations. It is a devastatingly sad situation for us long-time beekeepers. It's not just businesses and family incomes that will be lost, but the experience and knowledge that comes with years of beekeeping will be lost too. Beekeeping is a lifestyle; we consider our bees to be part of our family, and now it feels like there has been a death in the family. We are just up against too many obstacles that are out of our control, I think I may be ready to hang up my smoker" He said. "We have been lobbying the Federal government for years, on behalf of many of the small to medium sized apiaries, to come to our aid. We could see the writing on the wall with the continued importation of adulterated honey and the constant poisoning of the bees through pesticide use and environmental pollution. To make things worse, there is also a shortage of imported bees from some traditional sources like Australia and New Zealand, due to the pandemic. We here at Niagara Beeway, can offer one immediate solution in this emergency situation. We have asked Canadian Food Inspection Agency to approve our application to import replacement bees from the Carpathian region of Ukraine. Niagara Beeway has already been certified to import queens from a reputable supplier in Ukraine, who could also provide an immediate supply of replacement bees with our shipments. The economic fallout from die-off, means that many of us, including myself, have taken a severe hit to our revenue stream. Personally, my orders for queen bees have been cut in half with more cancellations coming in every day. This is just one more urgent issue on top of our request for the Govt. to introduce a 5-year moratorium to eliminate adulterated imported honey. We understand that not all beekeepers are in line with these suggestions, but no one has come up with a better solution. We do not want govt handouts, what we want is a fair playing field so that independent beekeepers can earn enough income to support their families." George asks, Why is the minister of agriculture silent on this issue? See more

If you are wondering what we’ve been up to... or why I can’t answer the phone right now... here’s a hint! Supply run yesterday & offloading and reloading for customers & our queen rearing addition. This will be enough to keep us going for a few weeks. If you are in need of Woodenware, spring treatments or any other beekeeping supplies email us at [email protected] Please include a phone number so we can call you back to ensure your orders accurate etc. ... Open by Appointment Only amd for curbside pickup through the season.

When a Good Time Turns Around

South Bound - Supply Run Day! Packed extra sanitizer & masks Blessed one of our suppliers is a friend makes this trip extra special when we can add them into our stops!South Bound - Supply Run Day! Packed extra sanitizer & masks Blessed one of our suppliers is a friend makes this trip extra special when we can add them into our stops!

Don’t forget we also have honey conveniently available Rusty Cellars Gourmet World and Leinala's Bakery in the South End.

Super cool I’d love a skep hive or to make one eventually even though it wouldn’t survive our climate think it would be neat to have for displays

I don’t recall a year I never made homemade gifts for friends and family members.... sure hope they know how much love goes into them

So true... must read

Ever wonder where our amazing logo came from? Well take a look at your jar of honey, the artists name is on the label. Last year Wallace R. Gillard came through at the 11th hour with an offer for us to use his art work on our honey labels. I first met Wallace at a Seedy Sunday event and was just mesmerized at his vast portfolio of art;of course I was immediately drawn to his bee series but also many of his pieces such as Edgar Allen Poe series spoke to me. I came back to the... farm that day and out of everything I took in I told Derek about the artist and his work. That Christmas Derek bought me my first pieces from the Bee Series. I now own them all. Last Summer I commissioned Wallace to do a custom piece of art for myself and my dear friend Glorianne. Glorianne’s Honey Dragon through his eyes and then for sale to share with those who loved her. This year I knew the time would come to place our honey in retail locations and to design marketing tools. It weighed heavily on me, I just could not picture our honey looking any different...there was nothing that would look better. Again, Wallace to the rescue. This will be our honey’s logo going forth. We are so truly blessed having such a generous and talented friend in our life. From custom pieces to gifts for friends through the years, if I am ever looking for something unique I always have turned to Wallace. Please let’s show this local talented artist some love this holiday season. Check out some of his work and make sure you tell him we sent you lol https://www.facebook.com/art.wrg/

Love supporting small businesses I may have to find a place for something from here. Know a hard to shop for beekeeper check this out