Bee mortality in Ukraine was 20-25% in 2024, industry losses due to war reach 30% - Institute of Beekeeping

In Ukraine in 2024, bee mortality in the controlled territory was 20-25%, this is significantly higher than pre-war figures and is explained by unfavorable weather conditions in the spring and summer, which led to a reduction in the area of honey plants, Volodymyr Postoyenko, director of Prokopovych Institute of Beekeeping, told the Interfax-Ukraine agency.

"2024 was a very difficult year for beekeepers due to a sharp change in climate. In the spring, white acacia is very important for the development of bee colonies. During its flowering period, there were frosts all over Ukraine. The bees did not get honey from it. Then there was a problem with an important honey plant - sunflower. Due to the drought, its yield was low, it did not secrete nectar and bee colonies did not develop. This led to a high mortality rate of bees, which in different regions amounted to 15-20%, and sometimes 23-27%. On average, this figure was around 20-25% across the country," the scientist said.

According to him, such a high level of mortality of bee colonies in Ukraine was not observed before the war. Previously, bee mortality in Ukraine was associated mainly with the lack of information about the chemical treatment of fields by farmers. The mortality of bees from pesticides was significant and in different regions. However, the state has introduced a number of legislative initiatives that allow beekeepers to defend their rights in court.

Postoyenko noted that mortality from viruses and diseases in Ukraine before the war was low, since the country bred only domestically bred bees. The situation has worsened as foreign bee breeds have begun to be introduced into production, which do not have the necessary resistance to existing regional diseases.

The scientist added that in a number of countries, the mortality rate of bee colonies reached 80-90% in different years, which is what caused public concern about the problem of bee mortality.

The director of the Institute of Beekeeping drew attention to the fact that the beekeeping industry of Ukraine, like a number of others, does not have reliable statistics, since only 5% of beekeepers are engaged in industrial production, and the remaining 95% are represented by households. They are in no hurry to register their apiaries, which is why the reporting on their activities is approximate.

"Before the war, according to unofficial statistics, there were 3-3.5 million bee colonies in Ukraine… In addition, unofficial statistics say that the apiaries that were in the current occupied territory before the war make up about 30% of the total number of apiaries in Ukraine before the war," the expert added.

Anna Burka, project manager of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in a comment to the Interfax-Ukraine agency clarified that in Ukraine in 2023 the number of bee colonies amounted to 2.403 million, which is 10.5% less than in 2022.

Burka emphasized that the rate of reduction of bee colonies in industrial enterprises was higher - 13.6%, to 32,500, and in households - by 10.5%, to 2.379 million.

According to her information, in Ukraine as of January 1, 2024, there were 2.314 million bee colonies, of which 2.286 million were in households, and 28,000 families in enterprises, of which 4,000 families were in farms.