Bayer's Second Annual Bee Care Tour Stops In Indiana

Bayer CropScience continued its second annual Bee Care Tour, a mobile tour designed to emphasize the important role bees play, by making its sixth stop at Purdue University in West Lafayette. The Tour aims to facilitate education and collaboration among growers, beekeepers, researchers, master gardeners and government officials to promote best stewardship practices in bee health.

Highlights from the stop included:

• A panel discussion featuring Dr. Greg Hunt, an esteemed entomology professor at Purdue University and author of The Purdue Bee Hive. Dr. Hunt was joined by Karen Scanlon, executive director of the — Conservation Technology Information Center; Steve McNair, director of development at Salem4youth; and Dave Shenefield, owner of Clover Blossom Honey, Indiana’s largest beekeeping, pollination and honey production operation.
• A featured presentation from Mark O’Rourke, Bayer CropScience SeedGrowth technical service representative, on how honey bees and crop protection can coexist to create a sustainable agriculture.
• A Bee Care Tour exhibit that featured a listening station on the impact Varroa mites have on honey bees, video on Bayer’s Bee Care Program and interactive quizzes and games on keeping bees healthy. The exhibit also included a honey tasting bar with several different flavors of honey; including samples provided by Clover Blossom Honey located in La Fontaine, IN.
• A pollinator-inspired breakfast and lunch, including a fresh cucumber, onion and tomato medley in sweet vinaigrette and honey glazed chicken tenders with honey mustard sauce.
Purdue University is the Bee Care Tour’s final stop before heading to Washington, DC, for National Pollinator Week June 16-23. The Tour has already stopped at Washington State University; the University of California, Davis; Oregon State University; Commodity Classic convention and tradeshow; and South Dakota State University.