# Honey Bee Imports From Australia May Be Banned



## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

Just saw this:

From ABJ Extra.

Honey Bee Imports From

Australia May Be Banned



According to Wayne Wheeling and Colin Stewart at USDA’s Animal and Plant Inspection Service (APHIS), a recommendation has been made to ban further imports of Australian Honey Bees. The decision is being made in lieu of continuing and increasing discoveries of Apis cerana honey bees in Australia. Those finds have steadily increased and now number 214 finds since 2007, according to Wheeling. 

Mr. Wheeling cautioned that at this point the border closing to Australian honey bees in only a recommendation, and that a final ruling has not been announced. When asked about continued imports from New Zealand and Canada, he said no change in their status would be made and that imports of honey bees would continue from those two countries.

A formal announcement of the ban will be printed in a future issue of the Federal Register if a final ruling is made to go forward with the ban, according toWheeling.


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

Almond contracts will go through the roof...


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## jean-marc (Jan 13, 2005)

It's already a done deal at this time. I think it was announced 2 days ago , maybe 3. They may change their minds in the futre but at this time the border is apparently closed.

Jean-Marc


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## afss (Mar 19, 2009)

i am new to this so just did a quick search on google. what is the draw back to Apis cerana aside from smaller honey yeild?


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

"what is the draw back to Apis cerana"

They can harbor a mite we don't have here . Not that any have been found on the cerana bees in Oz, but you never know. Then there is the virus issue...


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## afss (Mar 19, 2009)

i thought i had read that the mite they had was varroa and that they were good at removing them and living with them and the virus i saw listed was nosema and we have that?


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

Nosema is a fungus/microsporidian/internal parasite. Not a virus at all. 
The mite that concerns us is Tropilaelaps clarea.
Varroa is of great concern to the Australian beekeepers. We all know its just a matter of time before they get to deal with that nightmare...

http://www.scienceimage.csiro.au/index.cfm?event=site.image.detail&id=6977


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## Robbo (May 11, 2008)

You guys better start splitting hey!!

I think ethically, its better that Aussie bees arent sent to their diseased/mono cropped death in California.

Buying aussie bees to fix a numbers problem in the USA, isnt 'farming' in my book, but thats the way the world works unfortunately...


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## jim lyon (Feb 19, 2006)

Not sure where your coming from on this Robbo: A lot of really good beekeepers (and a few bad ones) have been working hard on this for years. Providing well over a million good hives a year at a time when hives arent normally at peak strength isnt easy. I think we are dealing with enough problems at the moment, the threat of bringing in more is understandably a little concerning up here. "Diseased mono-cropped death??????" I'll just leave that one alone.:s


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## Kingfisher Apiaries (Jan 16, 2010)

This is what it said in yesterdays ABJ extra- 


> According to Wayne Wheeling and Colin Stewart at USDA’s Animal and Plant Inspection Service (APHIS), a recommendation has been made to ban further imports of Australian Honey Bees. The decision is being made in lieu of continuing and increasing discoveries of Apis cerana honey bees in Australia. Those finds have steadily increased and now number 214 finds since 2007, according to Wheeling.
> 
> Mr. Wheeling cautioned that at this point the border closing to Australian honey bees in only a recommendation, and that a final ruling has not been announced. When asked about continued imports from New Zealand and Canada, he said no change in their status would be made and that imports of honey bees would continue from those two countries.
> 
> A formal announcement of the ban will be printed in a future issue of the Federal Register if a final ruling is made to go forward with the ban, according toWheeling.



Mike


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

Quote: "Mr. Wheeling cautioned that at this point the border closing to Australian honey bees in only a recommendation, and that a final ruling has not been announced. "

Doesn't sound like its a done deal to me.


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## jean-marc (Jan 13, 2005)

Well I guess he's doing the women thing and reserving the right to change his mind.

"Diseased mono cropped death" Right, sounds like you may not have any experience with bees and California almonds. But ever there was a bee that would die in California almonds the Australian honeybee might be a good candidate.

Jean-Marc


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

From Kim Flottum:

CATCH THE BUZZ
Australian Bees Supposedly Banned From U.S. 
An Editorial:
The Almond Board today sent the message below to their handlers. We do not yet have confirmation from USDA APHIS and are awaiting official word. But if honey bee importation from Australia is halted, as we have felt it should be from the beginning, the push for bees from somewhere else will intensify. Mention has been made of bees from Mexico or from Canada. The negotiations and dealing to make either of those work will be interesting to watch. 

If African bees from Mexico are allowed to come to the U.S., will they cause problems in orchards? Will they come as colonies and return, or as packages and simply stay here like the bees from OZ? 

Would Canada allow U. S. bees to venture north, as honey producers, pollinators or simply as queens in return for the chance at California’s Gold? Would they bring colonies down early in the season…like next month…to overwinter in preparation for spring?

But would any of them actually want to come to Almond country and take the CCD gamble? 
But the biggest question of all...Will there be enough U.S. bees next spring to meet the needs of the Almond Industry? 

These scenarios bring out the good, the bad and the ugly side of all of this. Please stay tuned, the outcome will affect your beekeeping and honey packing business this season.

From The Almond Board to their Handlers:
We received a heads up that USDA’s Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will be halting the importation of all honey bees from Australia. The ban will take effect the date the Federal Register Notice appears, which should be in the next 2 weeks. 

APHIS reconsidered the potential risk that imported Australian honey bees may pose of introducing new pests and diseases to honey bees in the U.S. Based on the continuing spread of a non-native bee (Apis cerana) in Australia and the uncertainties about what new viral diseases it may be spreading among bee populations in Australia, APHIS believes honey bee imports from Australia pose an unacceptable risk of introducing new diseases in the United States.


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## Kingfisher Apiaries (Jan 16, 2010)

Hopefully it will send almond pollination prices through the roof!


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## Keith Jarrett (Dec 10, 2006)

Hopefully the america keeper will get there act together and fill the demand with good bees, but I wouldn't bet on it.


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## Kingfisher Apiaries (Jan 16, 2010)

True, very true. I am doing my part down here in tx. Plan to piggy back with 20 this winter. I also am working on things that stimulate the bees very early. I have drones a month before everyone else down here does. 

Mike


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## Bradley_Bee (May 21, 2008)

this is a very big problem for us. We don't go to the almonds. We make our splits in February.


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## jean-marc (Jan 13, 2005)

Slim, that's your choice. Seems to me you should go. Get the $150, split after. They do build up well on almonds. In the bee business as in most, cash is King. Take the cash, thank me later.

Jean-Marc


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## MTINAZ (Jan 15, 2010)

how many hives do you have to have before you can start pollinating. 10? 20? 100? I am small put growing and hope to go full time in the future.


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

Depends, if you are pollinating locally 10 is enough to start. Takes a while to get the contracts and if you start small and grow into it [what I've been doing] things will fall into place.


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## Kingfisher Apiaries (Jan 16, 2010)

MTINAZ said:


> how many hives do you have to have before you can start pollinating. 10? 20? 100? I am small put growing and hope to go full time in the future.


I got my first pollination gig was when I was 13....2 hives. That "pollination gig" has just turned in to another free yard.


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## simplyhoney (Sep 14, 2004)

GOOD RIDANCE!!!!!!!!The audacity of the two or three beekeepers (names need not be mentioned, just look for the full page add in the abj) to underhandedly lobby to open the border to foreign bees for their own personal wealth has driven me nuts for years. Maybe Aussie bees are to blame for problems maybe not but.....
coinicedently major problems started in 06..Aussie bees arrived in 05. Shortly after the ABJ did an article that showed that the Aussie bees seemed to be ammuned to the problems and coinicedently mites arrived in Hawaii shortly after imports started....and coinicedently it is a refueling/cargo drop for most of the flights containing Aussie bees.


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## Robbo (May 11, 2008)

"It's akin to a drowning man throwing off his life preserver and saying, 'the life preserver was why I was drowning'."


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## alpha6 (May 12, 2008)

The problem is our inept government will "talk" about the "problem" but seeing any real action is doubtful because the USDA and everyone else in the government bureaucracy are hesitant to make a decision. Why you ask...because if they make a decision and it's wrong then it could be problems for them...if they don't make a decision then, no problems. They can always come back later if they realize they should have made a decision and said..well we were studying the problem, see look at this report. We just didn't have enough information at the time but now we see we were on the right track...etc, etc.


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## simplyhoney (Sep 14, 2004)

Retribution! make the importers pay! Perhaps they can fund research from the thousands of $120 packages sold to solve the problem they potentially created.

Robbo, you are assuming that the beekeepers were crying for imports. Generally most of did not. It was only a hand full of people that thought it was a good idea to spend their pollenation fee on packages and have "free bees" for oncomming summer honey crop. Most of us saw potential problems but were powerless to stop it. I don't recall the importers EVER consulting ANY major U.S. beekeeping organizations such as the American Bee Federation or American Honey Producers to see if this was a viabile good idea. It was an under the table deal orchastrated by a few people.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

Plenty of us saw a potential problem with unknown viruses coming in on Au bees and told the government so when they were first considering these mass imports.

We were ignored.

So what is the current status of the imports? Is it a done deal or are they weaseling again.


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

My understanding is that it will be published in the Federal Register in November and then it will be law. Until it's published it's not in effect.


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

simplyhoney said:


> Shortly after the ABJ did an article that showed that the Aussie bees seemed to be ammuned to the problems and coinicedently mites arrived in Hawaii shortly after imports started....and coinicedently it is a refueling/cargo drop for most of the flights containing Aussie bees.


They don't even have mites in Australia.


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## ga.beeman (Mar 29, 2009)

They do have mites down under. It is time for the american beekeeper to step up and fill the void if at all possible. if we need more for almond then look to the north (canada) for more bees. they have alot at stake if they bring bees down. but they are a by far a better choice for us then getting them across the ocean. lets help each other out for the better of beekeeping.


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## irwin harlton (Jan 7, 2005)

They do have Apis Ceranea

Which came first, the chicken or the egg......everywhere else varroa arrived first, long before Ceranea


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

ga.beeman said:


> They do have mites down under.


You mean in Aussie?

No they don't. Where did you get your information Beeman?

Irwin is correct though, they do have Apis Ceranae.





ga.beeman said:


> It is time for the american beekeeper to step up and fill the void if at all possible.


I think you guys just need to work a bit harder at getting your bees through winter in good shape.

For those interested though, here's a link to video of some bees coming your way from my part of the world!

http://www.aratakihoneyrotorua.co.nz/video.htm


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## chillardbee (May 26, 2005)

Funny how Australia could have Apis cerana (the natural host of the varroa) without having the mite as well. If they have had around 250 confirmed reports of cerana in aussie, it would be hard to believe that they don't have the mite. I mite add also that the mite we we're dealing with today also came from cerana. If they don't have the mite, it's only a matter of time. 

I'm actually going to be getting queens from Arataki. God bless Russel Berry for his initiative to get some of the old world stock back. I can't wait to get my black carniolan darlings next spring. Info on their queens can be found on there web site at http://www.aratakihoneyrotorua.co.nz/packagebees.htm


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

Yes the issue of how they have Ceranae, but not varroa, is an interesting one, or just the issue of how they don't have mites all. And some better brains than mine have been trying to figure that out for a while.

Ceranae are not recent to Aussie, they have been found there on and off for several years.

I've wondered if it's something in the Aussie climate doesn't suit mites, but who knows?

Also, Beeman and others, I would be interested in where you got your info, or was it something you just assumed because it seemed "Funny"?

Oh & Will, I got a couple of black queens from Arataki a few months back just to try. One of them, to be honest wasn't up to much, but the other is a beautiful bee, extremely docile, explosive growth, and packing in a lot more honey than the Italians. I did have to take strong steps to prevent it swarming though. These bees have had work to increase VSH, but they are not all the way there yet.


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## Keith Jarrett (Dec 10, 2006)

Oldtimer said:


> I think you guys just need to work a bit harder at getting your bees through winter in good shape.
> 
> http://www.aratakihoneyrotorua.co.nz/video.htm



Stop!!!!!!! We have the winning answer.


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## jim lyon (Feb 19, 2006)

Oh man how could we have been so stupid?:doh:


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

Beats me.

Throw away society perhaps?

Where I live there are no bulk supply spring packages, we aim for 100% winter survival and mostly come close.

Then in the autum, we have spare bees & sell 'em to you.


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## irwin harlton (Jan 7, 2005)

Oldtimer, I have a question for you

Do queens in NZ lay in a clockwise circle or a counter clockwise , seems once queens cross the equator they have hard time deciding which way they are going to lay... really seems to bugger them up


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## ga.beeman (Mar 29, 2009)

Nothing funny her oldtimer. the cape bee (Apis Cerana I think) has been documented in australia and there is a mite (Tropilaelaps) may not be spelled right that is assocated with the cape bee. We do not want this mite coming to this country. It is confirmed that they have them and it is only a matter of time before they end up here if we keep recieveing as many packages of bees as we have been getting from Australia. Nothing against the folks down under or you either oldtimer. Just looking out for the best interest of american beekeepers.


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

ga.beeman said:


> Just looking out for the best interest of american beekeepers.




Totally agree. In my country bee imports are totally banned, we don't want other countries problems, and nor should you.

However they don't have cape bees (Apis mellifera capensis) in Australia, nor do they have Tropilaelaps mites. 

Got to say, I am starting to worry about the quality of information on this forum.

What they have, is some apis ceranae, in low numbers, with no mites ever being found.

A matter of time? well maybe, maybe not, who knows. But for now, no mites. I'm a guy who prefers facts to opinions / third hand guesses, sorry if that doesn't work for everybody. But that's how I've had to be to make a living in this business.


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## WI-beek (Jul 14, 2009)

Im going to poke in here even thought I dont really know the status of cerana in aussie and what not. Oldtimer, I believe what people here are saying is that it is next to impossible for you to not contract mites from cerana if they are in your country. Cerana is the original host of varroa, and it would be next to impossible for you to get a swarm of cerana that did not have mites. It would be like a swarm of bees from here getting on a cargo ship and then getting off in aussie. You would then have mites. You will not find a colony here without mites. How would you get a colony of cerana without mites?

I believe that is the point. If you somehow magically got a miracle swarm of cerana without mites that started your cerana population you are indeed very lucky.

You will get them. Enjoy beekeeping while you are free of them!


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

Yes I know that's what they're saying. To some people, it will be logic. 

Just don't mind the facts.

Anyhow, I really didn't know it was going to be such a big deal, heck I don't even live in Australia, in my country, we DO have varroa mites.


If mass hysteria has to take over, and all of a sudden everybody is accusing Australia of harboring everything from Cape Bees to Tropilaelaps, it's sad, but end of the day, it's no skin off my nose. Whatever makes people happy!









But do you guys even know the difference between Cape Bees and Apis ceranae?


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

From the Weaver website:

> The ABF and the AHPA petitioned USDA-APHIS to close the border to Australian imports last year. USDA announced a temporary suspension of imports of bees and queens.

> USDA-APHIS has not provided any official written explanation for what it is doing, and so it is very difficult to respond to or refute their claims when they don't publish the official rationale for their decision.

> We encourage Beekeepers who need queens, and who are unable to get queens from US suppliers, to contact USDA with their concerns.

http://www.beeweaver.com/TaylorMade-Breed.html

A good thing IMO


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Alberta Beekeeper Alan Dick doesn't see any problem w/ Australian Queens and Bees. They have been using them in Alberta, Canada for years w/out problems. "Some are good and some are bad. Just like queens and packages from the southern U.S..", he said just this past weekend.


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

sqkcrk said:


> Alberta Beekeeper Alan Dick doesn't see any problem w/ Australian Queens and Bees. They have been using them in Alberta, Canada for years w/out problems. "Some are good and some are bad. Just like queens and packages from the southern U.S..", he said just this past weekend.


Bob Harrison says the same thing [he's a large beek in Missouri]. However, I think the risk of Tropilaelaps is too great to continue to import them.


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## chillardbee (May 26, 2005)

ga.beeman said:


> Nothing funny her oldtimer. the cape bee (Apis Cerana I think) has been documented in australia and there is a mite (Tropilaelaps) may not be spelled right that is assocated with the cape bee. We do not want this mite coming to this country. It is confirmed that they have them and it is only a matter of time before they end up here if we keep recieveing as many packages of bees as we have been getting from Australia. Nothing against the folks down under or you either oldtimer. Just looking out for the best interest of american beekeepers.


I'm sure you mean the cerana bee (Apis Cerana) which is native to southern asia as apposed to the cape bee (apis Mellifera Capensis) which is from southern africa. It would make more sense that the southern asiatic bees would find there way into Australia since they are closer. the cerana bee is noted for it's swarming and even absconding behavior so the chance of a swarm hitching a ride on a ship to Australia is there.


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

Correct, cerana have been found in Aussie, capensis are not.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

If Australian beeks consider apis cerane a potential problem, shouldn't we too?

http://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201011/s3070055.htm

And once again, it isn't the bee itself that seems to be the problem.I doubt if 
cross breeding is likely or even possible with Western honey bees.

The problem is the potential for the Trop.C. mite and unknown viruses to be introduced.Not enough has been done to detect viruses in bee populations.Some USA beeks feel the Australian bee imports DID bring in some virus issues.


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## Allen Martens (Jan 13, 2007)

I think Trop. mite and additional viruses from Apis cerana being vectored to North America via Australian honey bees is a valid concern. Though, I do not think any of the A. cerana swams caught in Australia have had Trop. mite. If I recall correctly, they have not had any varroa either.

With Australian bees having come into Canada for years, I find it difficult to believe that viruses present in Australian bee import to this point, were not in North America already via Canada.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

>With Australian bees having come into Canada for years, I find it difficult to believe that viruses present in Australian bee import to this point, were not in North America already via Canada. <

This might be the case. Kashmir Bee virus comes to mind. But does anyone know what new viruses, if any, are in the Cerana population. Probably not,its not like you can see the little buggers.
And what about the new virus Jerry B. found that seems to be working with Nosema C to cause collapse. Where did that one sneak in from?:scratch:
My concern is that whatever new thing comes in, it always shows up in the almonds , from whence it travels everywhere else.


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## chillardbee (May 26, 2005)

Lets say that if Australia and hawaii both have their borders closed to the export of live bees, does anyone know how this will effect the price of queens from else where? I'll be ordering some queens from a canadian beek who'll be getting them from NZ, but where as the price last year was around 21.00/queen, this year I have a feeling that they are going to be much more if the borders are closed. Any thoughts from anyone?


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## ChristopherA (Jul 20, 2010)

I honestly dont thing this will affect pricing. I thin 25.00 would be more of the average cost than 21.00 based on all the dealers I know. Shipping cost were high, averaging about 7.00 for a queen when it only cost about 3.50 to actually pay for queen cage and shipping. If you are going to order a queen, you might as well order 5 or 10 in since the shipping cost is the same. Put the queens in a nuc for just in case emergency. Currently the people I am dealing with are keeping last year prices. Around 10 dollares for virgins, 25 for open mated and 100 to 150 for AI queens/breeder queens.

I dont put to much into this and see this as a good thing in the US. I only hope that eventually they put a tarif or ban honey sales from out of the US in order to help the companies in the US. So much has been lost to outsourcing to countries.

I havent kept up on the reasoning but did they release a specific cause for the ban or is it still in that gray area?

Thank You,

Chris


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