Grenada agricultural and custom officials have stepped up their surveillance amid reports that people were seeking to illegally import Africanize bees from Trinidad and Tobago.
No bees should be imported
“We want the general public to know especially those who are not registered with the Ministry of Agriculture as a beekeeper that bees should never be imported into the country, no matter which part of the world they come, no bee should be imported,” said Quasi Williams of the Veterinary and Livestock Division of the Ministry of Agriculture.
He said the Division had received reliable information that an apiary operator was seeking to import the bees illegally from Trinidad.
A statement issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands warned the general public that it is illegal to import bees from other regional islands as well as internationally.
Stop immediately
“Persons seeking to bring in Africanized bees from Trinidad are asked to stop immediately as these bees would destroy our native bees and very harmful to the Grenadian population,” the statement said.
Williams said that Africanized bees also known as killer bees “are very dangerous and shouldn’t be allowed into our island and the Ministry would treat this matter very seriously.”
He urged persons with any information regarding the importation of Africanized bees from Trinidad to report the matter to the relevant authorities.
Earlier this month, Barbados said it would become the second country in the Caribbean to establish an apiary lab geared at detecting diseases among the island’s bee population and to determine the extent of the Africanization of the bees.
