Experts and MEPs, meeting in Brussels on Monday 29 May, highlighted the critical situation facing European beekeepers because of the fall in bee numbers and the massive import of honey, in particular from China.
Peter Bross of the Hungarian Beekeepers’ Association and a member of the Honey Advisory Group within DG Agriculture of the European Commission, argued that beekeepers should be able to make a decent living from their work. He urged consumers to buy honey produced in the EU. Half of the demand is met by EU honey but there are not enough outlets for European honey, he regretted. What is needed, he said, are traceability channels for honey imported, for example, from China or Argentina. He made the point that it is impossible to determine whether or not resin has been used to filter the honey.
Peter Maske of the German Beekeepers’ Association spoke of the support that could be given to the sector. He bemoaned the loss of 20% of swarms (due to parasites, pesticides residues, disease, etc.) in Germany this year. He was also critical of the harmful effect of the use of glyphosate (he supports a ban) and recommended a number of measures for the forthcoming reform of the common agricultural policy (CAP): - edges around forests; - alternative plants to maize; - flowering areas; - cereals that flourish in June. These measures could fall within the greening of direct payments to farmers, Maske argued.
“Beekeepers have to be helped”, said Thierry Dufresne of the French bee observatory (OFA) and a member of Copa and Cogeca, the farmers’ and agri-cooperative organisations in the EU. He argued that “ultra-filtered” Chinese honey was not really honey at all. He was very concerned about adulterated or “false” honey which makes up about 20% of the market. He also highlighted the damage being done by Asian hornets.
A number of MEPs were concerned at the claims by the experts that bees found more food in cities than in the countryside. The scale of imports from China were highlighted by several members of the agriculture committee, which has called for clearer labelling of where honeys come from. Martin Häusling (Greens/EFA, Germany) was shocked at experts’ statements that up to 15 pesticides had been found in samples of honey and at the derogations that exist on the use of neonicotinoids, a class of toxic products used as insecticides which act on the central nervous system of the insects. Eric Andrieu (S&D, France) said that the Natura 2000 directive maintained certain areas for biodiversity and he drew attention to the vote to be held in the Parliament’s agriculture committee on 20 May on the delegated act on greening (see EUROPE 11791).
The Commission pointed out that €36 million worth of Community funding was available from beekeeping schemes. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)