Half a dozen properties in three states have been raided as part of a probe into how the deadly varroa mite reached Australia, the bee industry says.
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The Australian Honeybee Industry Council says federal police have targeted properties in southern Queensland, northern NSW and Tasmania in recent months.
The raids were part of a federal investigation led by the agriculture department, CEO Danny Le Feuvre said.
The department is confident there will be an outcome soon.
"We know there's been half a dozen raids around the eastern seaboard," Mr Le Feuvre told AAP.
"The industry is strongly demanding answers around this.
"We hope it's something we can satisfy industry with, in understanding how it got here and closing that pathway off in the future," he said.
AAP has sought comment from the department. Federal police referred questions to the department saying it's their investigation.
The department has previously confirmed the existence of Operation Decker, which is linked to the incursion of the mite, an exotic parasite that weakens and kills honey bee colonies.
It was originally found at the Port of Newcastle in June 2022 and has since spread to hundreds of other sites in NSW, with the destructive pest now so entrenched eradication has been deemed impossible.
The scourge may have started with the illegal importation of live bees but the insects could also have hitched a ride on cargo.
The arrival of the varroa mite has forever changed the honeybee industry and will likely see the 'majority' of feral bees disappear from the landscape Mr Le Feuvre told a major agricultural conference on Wednesday.
Australia has among the highest numbers of feral bee populations of anywhere in the world.
"We think that that will impact our growers and the growers that have previously enjoyed free pollination, will then have to look for paid pollination services," Mr Le Feuvre said.
The varroa mite's arrival sparked a 15 month "ineffective" eradication program designed to stop the mite's spread, with 47,000 hives destroyed - ten per cent of the NSW population.
Record number of beekeeping businesses are for sale across the industry and anxiety is high according to the honey bee chief.
"We can expect in our industry to also see a large number of beekeepers leave," he said.
The ABARES conference was also told the apple industry will be particularly badly hit by any loss of feral bees with some producers reliant on the population for pollination.
Australian Associated Press
