Southern Alberta beekeeper frustrated after thousands of bees stolen

A recent heist in southern Alberta stung one local beekeeper. Thieves made off with thousands of his bees, costing him tens of thousands of dollars.

A beekeeper southeast of the city is missing tens of thousands of bees after 57 beehives were stolen from various locations across Foothills County.

“This was actually the most recent site that was hit,” said Jon Zwiers of Honey Meadow Farms in Foothills County.

“The day before, we had found out that three of our other locations had similar events happen, and it’s rattling.”

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Zwiers says he noticed that 18 hives were missing from his location along Range Road 283, just south of Hwy 552 E.

“It’s almost a surreal event right now because it’s happened over multiple locations,” said Zwiers.

“We just want it to stop and that the bees be returned.”

Each hive can contain up to 15,000 bees, imported from New Zealand and Tasmania.

“Yesterday, I was almost in tears. I wrote a Facebook post, and the response has been pretty positive. Everyone is supportive, but the problem is, we can’t stop it,” said Zwiers.

“I guess we’re just counting on somebody to just do the right thing.”

The spring season is when the bees are hard at work ahead of a summer harvest.

“At this point in time, it’s an empty site,” said Zwiers.

“Normally, it should be buzzing. We shouldn’t even be standing here without our protection on.”

High River RCMP are investigating the theft.

“It is kind of interesting. It’s not something you see every day,” said RCMP public information officer Cpl. Gina Slaney.

“It’s expected that the value of the bees that were stolen is over $60,000. So, it would be a theft over $5,000 that we’re investigating.”

Slaney says RCMP are calling on the public to help with the investigation.

“It looks like the suspects cut the barbed wire gate that led into the field. So, we do have some evidence for the scene,” she said.

“There’s no CCTV there. It’s out in a remote area. So yes, we are encouraging people who drive by; maybe there are farmers out checking their fields late at night. If you see anything suspicious, please report it to your local RCMP detachment. We rely on these types of tips to help solve these types of crimes.”

For Zwiers, he thinks someone within the beekeeping industry may be responsible, calling it a professional job, in the way the bees were taken.

“The bees have to go through such a cold, hard winter. So, the desperation by some beekeepers, maybe, who suffered losses, is to replenish those beehives,” he said.