With less than 10,000 tonnes of honey produced in France, the year 2021 has been “the worst in French beekeeping”, says the spokesperson for the National Union of French Apiculture.
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Already threatened in France by intensive agriculture or the Asian hornet, bees are also suffering from climate change. “The harvests are more and more irregular”, what “greatly complicates the life of professional beekeepers”alert Friday June 10 the National Union of French Beekeeping (Unaf), while three days are planned at the end of the month to raise awareness of the importance of these pollinating insects, essential allies of agriculture.
Fires, hail, floods… Hives can suffer from different impacts of climate change, underlines its spokesperson, beekeeper Henri Clément. So 2021 “was the worst year for French beekeeping”, with less than 10,000 tonnes of honey produced. 2022 has started well in most regions thanks to a mild winter, but “We are extremely worried about the drought that is coming,” continues the beekeeper, recalling that the plants, if they suffer, do not produce nectar.
The mortality rate in the hives “is on average around 30% per year, it’s colossal”, he recalls. “Beekeepers, to maintain their livestock, are forced to replenish them with extra work and extra cost”continues the spokesperson for Unaf. “If there were no beekeepers to replenish the herds, we would already be short of bees on the territory”warns the beekeeper, while they ensure “35% of our food resources” by pollination.
If beekeepers with more than 50 hives can benefit from the agricultural calamity system to compensate for these losses, 90% of farmers have less than 10 hives.