Started in 2019, the VARROAFORM Operational Group, which is leaded by FEUGA, seeks to develop an effective formulation for the control and prevention of varroatosis in domestic bee. Varroatosis, caused by the Varroa destructor mite, is one of the most problematic diseases in apiculture, as it can kill up to 100% of the bees in a hive.

In the framework of the dissemination activities, a new technical video focused on the field assays carried out by the beekeepers participating in the project of the new formulations developed, has been published by VARROAFORM. Patricia Combarros, beekeeping veterinary and collaborator with VARROAFORM, explains in this video the activities and techniques developed in the mentioned assays, with which it is sought to know the characteristics regarding antimite effectiveness, innocuousness on bees, ease of application, influence of the climate, etc., of the developed formulations.

Besides FEUGA, the project is comprised by the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) and the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) and the beekeepers Agustín Arias, Benigno Basteiro and Urbano González.

VARROAFORM is an innovation project 80% co-financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) of the European Union and 20% by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, within the framework of the National Rural Development Program 2014-2020. The General Directorate of Rural Development, Innovation and Agrifood Training (GDRDIAT) is the authority in charge of the application of this aids. Total project budget: €395,920.30.  Total grant: €379,920.30.

FEUGA is responsible of this content.