Imported Wood Products- Is it good or bad for our bees?

The last several years, you may have wondered “How can a international company market hive components at 20% less?”  These hive components can be frames, hive supers, hive bottom boards, and outer covers.  These foreign sellers on the internet are selling foreign sourced wood products.

This year, a couple of large U.S. based beekeeping suppliers are beginning to source foreign wood supplies from China and Vietnam.  Most would not think there is much difference between wood sources in Asia versus wood products here in the USA.  One might think that it is not a big deal until you understand U.S. Federal law and how this law affects the woodware a prospective buyer should consider.  There is a very BIG difference in the wood products.  U.S. laws requiring Fumigation and Phytosanitary Certification.  The U.S. requirement assists in the protection of foreign insects from entering into the U.S. via wood products.  The fumigation is designed to kill all insects within the foreign wood products.  What happens is any wood product must have the chemical Methyl Bromide fumigated for 24 hours at 86 degrees.

Do we really want to put our bees in a hive that has been completely fumigated with the toxic chemical of methyl bromide.

Please note that all domestic wood products are not fumigated.  This is why our hive ware is sourced domestically!

We proudly mark our hive frames and hive ware are sourced lumber and sawed from the USA!