Melita Bees has accused Ontario, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island of using unfair trade rules to block sakes if $4 million worth of bees from Europe.
It said its bees meet Canadian Food Inspection Agency standards and an international trade agreement, but Ontario imposed extra rules that forced it to cancel orders that were in progress. The bees would have died in quarantine had they been shipped, it said in a complaint filed with Global Affairs in Ottawa.
Melita said Ontario wanted bees to be held for 14 days in indoor quarantine conditions that the bees could not survive.
That was never requested by the CFIA during the federal inspection process, Melita said.
