Norroa™️ : a silver bullet or costly non-essential?
Vadescana is an EPA-approved treatment for the control of Varroa. Individual states also need to approve its use {{1}} and it is being sold under the name Norroa™️ (in the US only, so far).
It is listed as being available from the 20th of October (a few days after this post appears), so surely it's a bit premature to comment on the product?
Well, not really.
The technology involved can be considered both cutting edge and old hat {{2}}.
It is cutting edge when compared to most miticides, the chemistry of which are usually decades old. Amitraz and tau-fluvalinates were developed at least 50 years ago, and have been used as miticides since the 1980s, with the organics (thymol and oxalic acid) being used for almost as long.
However, in terms of molecular biology (a discipline that develops a lot faster than beekeeping, or even parasite control), the technology underlying vadescana/Norroa™️ is at least middle-aged. This means that we now understand molecular mechanisms, and the potential for resistance, even if there are gaps in our understanding about how well they work, and there is a body of published, peer-reviewed, literature to consider (though almost none specifically on vadescana).
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It's also not too soon to discuss it because I've already received several comments or questions on vadescana, since the press release first appeared {{3}} … beekeepers are interested.
I'm going to (briefly) discuss the mechanism of action — which is really neat — and comment on the obvious potential advantages and less obvious disadvantages of the technology.