Moldova May Forget the Taste of Honey

The image of “blossoming Moldova” also includes the title of the “country-apiary”. In fact, it really used to be so. Up to the 1990s almost all collective farms or state farms of the republic had their own apiaries while the number of bee families reached 200 thousand. However, economic hardships had a negative effect not only on a number of strategic branches of the national economy, but also on beekeeping. As a result, the number of bee families as well as honey production decreased considerably.

According to the data provided by the National Association of Beekeepers the number of bee families began to grow and amounted to 85 thousand this year. It should be mentioned that this calculation is approximate since it is performed superficially. The fact is that private farmers are mostly engaged in honey production and their number, like that of bee families, is unstable. Both the experts of the National Agency for Consultations and Studies in Agriculture (ACSA) and those of the National Association of Beekeepers consider that Moldova is capable of keeping six times more bee families and of producing over 10 thousand tons of honey annually. The republic is capable, but… in 2003, for instance, Moldova produced 2,18 thousand tons of honey. 1,55 thousand tons or 71% of the honey produced was exported to the USA, Germany and Italy. It is estimated that Moldova could produce and therefore export not less than 5 thousand tons every year.

All these difficulties can be explained. First of all the sluggish development of the beekeeping industry is due to a lack of markets to sell finished products. Or rather the market exists but the way to it is thorny and difficult for Moldovan beekeepers. Furthermore, the beekeeping industry needs state support as well as foreign investments in order to develop.

In the words of Andrei Zagareanu, chairman of the National Association of Beekeepers, in order to win international market documents attesting to the quality of Moldovan honey are needed. The primary examination of Moldovan honey intended for export is conducted in Bucharest (Romania) and it costs 80 Euro for a lot. In Germany a full examination of one export lot of honey costs 300 Euro. “It is very expensive and disadvantageous to Moldovan beekeepers,” Andrei Zagareanu believes, “and such a state of things creates obstacles to export.”

Local producers consider that in order to establish export deliveries of Moldovan honey to foreign markets it is extremely important to create a specially equipped laboratory for conducting a complete examination of the product. If beekeepers had a chance to get the final results of the examination here in Moldova the volume of honey export would be likely to increase considerably. However, Moldovan beekeepers acknowledge the fact that they are also to blame for invisible exports. The point is that most of them still work in accordance with old methods by using antibiotics for both preventive measures and treatment of different bee diseases. It is clear enough that the existing high standards of the European Union exclude even the possibility of competing on foreign markets. In order to produce ecologically clean products one should work with extracts obtained from natural materials without using any chemicals.

The conclusion is that Moldovan beekeepers have to change their production methods in order to survive and develop rapidly. They do not dispute that but believe that Moldovans should also change their attitude to “honey issues”. The level of honey consumption among the population of Moldova is very low. The average citizen of the republic consumes 20-40 g of honey a year while, for example, the average citizen of Germany eats 2-3 kg a year. If we increase honey consumption inside the country we will settle the problem of its realization.

The National Association of Beekeepers suggests that an advertising campaign should be launched in Moldova to accustom people to consuming more honey. Instead of propagating “Snickers” and “Mars”, Andrei Zagareanu says, we had better advertise home-produced honey. But money is needed to do that, and the association doesn't have it. Mr. Zagareanu believes consolidation of producers is a way out. In this case, an advertising action could be launched. Or, at least, selling exhibitions could be organized, which, however, also need assistance. Beekeepers believe the branch will be developing too slowly without state support. "The equipment and preparations for keeping bees are not produced in the Republic of Moldova and we have to import them. We also do not have special legal norms for regulating the activity and protection of beekeepers", the association members maintain.

And what is more, all kinds of obstacles are put in beekeepers' way. As is known, to produce commodity honey (or that needed for the additional forage of the insects), producers take bees to the forests during the blooming or to the blooming fields (sunflower, buckwheat, sage). But for a beehive to stand on the territory of the forest, at least 15 lei for a lodge must be paid. In a number of countries, producers receive dividends from using bees for pollination, but in our country everything is on the contrary, while bees increase the yield by 30% from a hectare. "I don't understand how the leadership of the country, the agrarian country, doesn't realize the advantage of the great help that can be given by bees ", Andrei Zagareanu says.

To change the situation, the association developed a bill almost two years ago. However, it remained at the Ministry of Agriculture and still hasn't been examined by the government and parliament. By the way, Gagauzia's legislators proved to be faster in this respect: the Law on Beekeeping already functions there and even a professional holiday – the Beekeeper's Day (the second Sunday of August) was established in this region.

The main objective of the Moldovan bill is to protect the producer and the local market. (Honey and by-products imported from Ukraine, Romania and even Italy are sold in Moldova at present). Also, the law envisages expansion of the use in pharmaceutics of by-products of beekeeping that aren't practically processed in our country.

Another good thing about beekeeping, in addition to everything mentioned above, is that any category of people – from pupils to pensioners – can be engaged in it. And it can be just an additional job, and respectively, an additional income of citizens.

Prepared by Vlada Popushoi