Vita celebrates its 15th anniversary
From one product to the world’s largest dedicated honeybee health specialist in a decade and a half
The challenges of new threats to honeybees plus complex and expensive regulatory systems are ever-present challenges, but Vita continues to grow as its products prove effective in environments across the world and its strong marketing networks can rely on the safety and efficacy of Vita products.
Founded in 1997 with just one product, Vita has grown to become the largest dedicated honeybee health company in the world with offices in France, Italy and Russia and a network of more than 60 international distributors.
Jeremy Owen, Sales Director of Vita (Europe) said: « These certainly have been interesting times. When we set up in business 15 years ago, we entered the marketplace with one product and an embryo distributor network. Today our distribution network is global and our growing product portfolio is well-proven.
« With our vibrant network of distributors and subsidiary companies, we’ve established Vita as the premier honeybee health products supplier in Western and Central Europe, the USA and the Middle East, and we are now developing our network in Eastern Europe, the countries of the former Soviet Union and South America. »
Dr Max Watkins, Technical Director at Vita (Europe) said: « Researching new products at a time like this is challenging, but enormously rewarding. I pay tribute to our international research partners and their dedication to the R&D of new products.
« As a company we aim to meet the demand of beekeepers for safe and effective products, but one of our greatest challenges is in complying with the requirements of a regulatory system that is out-of-kilter with the economics of the beekeeping sector. Nonetheless, we are strong advocates of regulation to ensure the safety of bees, the environment and humans and the efficacy of products, but the current situation of conflicting and complex international regulations does often slow the speed of products to market. »
Vita’s diverse international research programme addresses the main threats to the honeybee — varroa, viruses, foulbrood, and the Asian hornet — in universities and institutes in Italy, Greece, and the UK. The latest and perhaps most exciting venture is Vita’s partnership with the University of Aberdeen and the UK National Bee Unit to try to develop a ground-breaking gene knock-down treatment to combat varroa.
Jeremy Owen concluded: « The future looks bright for our teenage company and for the improved health of honeybees across the world. We look forward to the next 15 years when I believe our investment in R&D and our work in developing our distributor network will lead to even greater successes. »
Notes to editors
Vita (Europe) Limited is a mite control and honeybee health specialist. It is the world’s largest dedicated supplier of honeybee health products to the honey and pollination industries.
With headquarters in the UK, offices in Italy, France and Russia, and partners across the globe, Vita researches, develops, and manufactures a range of honeybee health products. These products are marketed internationally through a network of 60 distributors in 50 countries.
Vita’s product range to improve honeybee health includes anti-varroa acaricides – Apistan® (outside the USA/Canada) and Apiguard® – chalkbrood and wax moth controls, foulbrood diagnostic kits and health-promoting feeds. Vita products have been registered by more than 60 veterinary authorities.
Vita promotes sustainable beekeeping through Integrated Pest Management (IPM). Its treatments are designed to inhibit the build-up of resistance and wherever possible contain natural compounds and biological controls that are benign to all but the target pests.
Vita invests a very high proportion of its turnover in research and development. Research partners include universities such as Cardiff, Milan, Udine and naples and institutes such as the Tierhygienisches Institut (Institute of Animal Health) in Freiburg, Germany, the UK Central Science Laboratory and the USDA in America. Vita’s innovative research and development work has been recognised by and has received support from the UK Government.
As a result of its primary research of natural control agents, Vita is currently engaged in new projects exploring mite control in the agriculture, veterinary, and horticulture industries as well as public health and human allergen control.
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