BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 1
By Fidan Babayeva - Trend:
The number of bee families in Azerbaijan has increased since early 2020, reaching more than 500,000, Chairman of the Management Board of the Azerbaijan Beekeepers Association Badraddin Hasratov told Trend.
“Two years ago, the number of bee families was 200,000, and this year it already exceeds 500,000. Honey productivity has also increased. If before we received 10 kilograms of honey from one beehive, now it’s 5 kilograms more. In late May, we started receiving first honey for 2020, and this process will continue until the end of August,” Hasratov said.
“Since early 2020, a sharp increase in honey sales has been observed in domestic market. At the same time, the volume of honey sales rose by 20 percent year-on-year,” he added.
“The Ministry of Agriculture began to pay us subsidies, and payments for each bee family. The increase in sales was reached by improving the quality of honey,” Hasratov said.
“Around 6,000 tons of honey were produced in Azerbaijan in 2019, and the population’s demand for it was 5,000 tons. This means that there is no need in the import of this product,” the chairman noted.
The Azerbaijan Beekeepers Association was established in early 2016. It unites 10,000 beekeepers and entrepreneurs in 50 regions of the country, 46 farms in regions and 4 farms in cities.
The main goals of the Association are the development of beekeeping, the solution of current problems of beekeepers and the development of a common concept for the development of this industry.
---
Follow the author on Twitter: Fidan_Babaeva