# amitraz- green light



## peacekeeperapiaries (Jun 23, 2009)

I thought I saw a thread in the past few months where it was stated that Amitraz/Tactik did not leave a residue in wax or honey. It was suggested as an emergency treatment for a serious mite infestation, knock them back real quick.


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## wildbranch2007 (Dec 3, 2008)

peacekeeperapiaries said:


> I thought I saw a thread in the past few months where it was stated that Amitraz/Tactik did not leave a residue in wax or honey. It was suggested as an emergency treatment for a serious mite infestation, knock them back real quick.


I don't know as i don't use it. just posted this as informational to any that do as from what I read, they will be testing for it. I don't know how that works for the Canadian beeks as last i read some section of canada it is legal to use.
then of course not leaving residue when we are talking no ppb??


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## PerryBee (Dec 3, 2007)

Apivar (active ingredient is Amitraz) was approved last year in Canada for emergency use till June 2010. From what I'm hearing is that results are very good.
Perry


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## peacekeeperapiaries (Jun 23, 2009)

thanks for the info I will try to follow it and see how it ends up.


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## wildbranch2007 (Dec 3, 2008)

one of the replies on bee-l says they had honey rejected in florida already and here is there explanation:

http://community.lsoft.com/scripts/wa-LSOFTDONATIONS.exe?A2=ind1002A&L=BEE-L&F=&S=&P=42336

if this link doesn't work its included where i said originally


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## Ishi (Sep 27, 2005)

It was stated at the California Bee Breeders Meeting in January by a County Inspector that the tolerance for amitraz is 0


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## ACBEES (Mar 13, 2009)

Florida doesn't surprise me. They just enacted the toughest honey purity standards in the country.


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## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

Amitraz does leave a residue!
I will give you some data later tonight.
Ernie


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

This past summer, I took part in a survery where a University in Ontario was testing wax for different chemicals. Check mite, apistan, amatrz, and some chemicals which are used on farms for spray. Talked to the guy who took the samples after i got my results. He said that in all the samples, all who had used amatrz (apivar) either the '09 fall or the '2010 spring showed no residue in the wax.
However, If they get the funding and do the study again, they are going to test for what amatrz breaks down into to see if any of that leaves a residue.

I am not a scientist, but those honey contaminated drums, I wonder how many did not follow directions for the use of amatrz?. I'm thinking of followed withdrawal times, not on with honey supers, and correct dosage


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## Kingfisher Apiaries (Jan 16, 2010)

I would like to hear why everyone is going nuts over this ILLEGAL chemical. Has anybody in this industry realized that the future of beekeeping does not lie in another chemical? Ever thought about the messes you are creating down the road, or do most have short term vision? Apistan was so great, and then resistance developed. Same with checkmite. What do you think is going to happen next? You are just planting mines. I understand having to use a chemical treatment, but have you thought of breeding your bees to be resistant to anything? 
My .02

Mike


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## Ian (Jan 16, 2003)

I participated in a honey pollen test looking for background contamination causing trace levels of lead in pollen and honey. I used apivar in the spring. they found no residues of any chemical in my honey


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## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

Here's some data that needs to be looked at:
Sure, no residue at ppm---


Abstract: Amitraz (Varroaset) is an acaricide applied against Varroa destructor Anderson & Trueman (Acarina: Varroidae) infestations on honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) (Hymenoptera: Apidae).* Amitraz residue in honey was determined by HPLC in Ankara, Turkey. *Honey samples were collected from beekeepers during the harvesting period in AyaĢ, Kızılcahamam and Polatlı towns in Ankara. Amitraz residue was found in various levels in six (15%) out of 32 honey samples. The residue amounts in the 6 samples were 5.35, 0.34, 0.23, 1.27, 0.92 and 0.40 ppm. The limit of detection was 0.0643 ppm and the recovery ratio was 56.71 %. According to the results, some honey samples showed higher residue levels of amitraz than the World Health Organisation (WHO) limit of 1 mg/kg.



Amitraz use can result in residue in honey, although some degradation occurs during the storage period.



As for amitraz, it is necessary that to give at least 21 day interval between last spraying and harvesting time for other crops.



Degradation processes of amitraz have been studied and the main degradation products are



2,4-dimethylaniline; N-(2,4-dimethylphenyl)-N′-methyl*formamidine* and 2,4-dimethylphenyl*formamide* (Korta et al. , 2001). 







The residue limit for Varroaset is 1mg/kg in honey and 0,6 mg/kg in wax. This value is 0.05 mg/kg for Bromoprophylate, 0.05 mg/kg for Fulvanilate and 0.05 mg/kg for Malathion (Cabras et al. 1993). Maximum daily intake limit (ADI) is 0.003 mg/kg for amitraz, 0.0005 mg/kg for Perizin and 0.005 mg/kg for Malathion (according to the FAO/WHO; Baxendale and Keith 1993) 

As shown in this study, amitraz can cause residue in some honey samples. Some of the honey samples contained amitraz at higher than 1 mg/kg, which is the maximum tolerance limit of WHO (Baxendale and Keith 1993). The residue problem is a reality concerning amitraz. For this reason, new research should be planned for honey and wax
_________________________

Ernie


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## Ian (Jan 16, 2003)

>> I understand having to use a chemical treatment, but have you thought of breeding your bees to be resistant to anything? 


Thats kinda whats going on right now, and to this date, breeding hasnt been able to bring us tolerance or resistance to the mite. The v mite problem is compounded with secondary infections like viral infections. Even with a hive that can hold down the mite count for a season longer, viral infections start to appear.


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