Designing and implementing a genetic improvement program in commercial beekeeping operations

Abstract

While other livestock breeders routinely refer to individual estimated breeding values based on large datasets, honey bee selection remains focused on personal preferences and ad hoc selection schemes. Transferring modern animal breeding methods to bees can be challenging due to the biological, environmental and industry-related realities of beekeeping. However, some of the global issues facing honey bees can be addressed sustainably by creating robust, disease-resistant honey bee populations that are adapted to the specific challenges of large-scale beekeeping. Traditional barriers to the development of modern honey bee breeding programs include the absence of pedigree due to free-mating, low penetration of genetic improvement into the general population and subsequent lack of adoption by the wider beekeeping industry. With managed mating, novel phenotyping approaches and affordable genotyping strategies, these barriers can potentially be overcome. Shifting the focus of genetic improvement away from single traits and towards an inclusive breeding goal for the modern honey bee that addresses both aspects of genetic sustainability and economic impact on beekeeping operations will ensure improved uptake by the industry. This review addresses some of the problems created by honey bee mating habits and reflects on managing them with the use of genomic information. It identifies potential traits of importance and briefly outlines the steps towards constructing an economically focused honey bee breeding objective. Moreover, it evaluates industry structures to facilitate the dissemination of improved genetics and lastly, discusses the value and the limitations of genomic information for honey bee breeding in a commercial context.