112 – Bob Curtis – Improving Bee Health During Pollination

Pollinating crops can be difficult on honey bees. Since 2014, the California Almond Board has been working with beekeepers, pest control advisors and groups like Project ApisM to come up with standards (Best Management Practices, BMPs) to increase the health of bees in California Almonds. This week we talk with former Director, Agricultural Affairs, Almond Board of California (ABC), Bob Curtis, about how the BMPs were developed and how effective they have been to help bees during pollination.

Bob has had an productive career with the Almond Board, and, in fact, still works with the Almond Board as a consultant. In 2013, Bob was awarded the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CA&ES) Award of Distinction, which recognized his work as a liaison for the betterment of partnerships between the almond industry and the agricultural research community. In 2018, He received the Eric Mussen Distinguised Service Award from the California Beekeepers Association and in 2019, Friend of the Industry Award from the American Honey Producers Association. He has served on several advisory groups, including the UC Davis CA&ES Dean’s Advisory Council. Bob received his master’s in agricultural entomology from UC Riverside and a bachelors in zoology from UC Los Angeles.