Imported honey lands French beekeepers in a sticky situation

Honey

France

Market & Price Trends

Published Mar 3, 2024

Tridge summary

French beekeepers are facing challenges in selling their honey due to an oversaturated market filled with imported honey, which makes up over 46% of supermarket stocks. The country imports around 35,000 tonnes of honey annually, mainly from Ukraine, Spain, Germany, Argentina, and China. Beekeepers are also worried about the relaxation of pesticide regulations, which they believe are harmful to bees. Despite the variety of honey produced in France, production is not meeting demand, leading to calls for supermarkets to promote local honey.

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Original content

French beekeepers showing off their gooey goodies at the Agriculture Fair in Paris say that selling their honey has become increasingly difficult because the market is saturated with imports. A rollback on pesticide rules is also causing worry for the welfare of bees. French people are very fond of honey and of other beehive products. Around 45,000 tonnes of honey is consumed in France every year. This makes France one of Europe's top honey-consuming countries, with the average person consuming 600 grams of honey. In France more and more honey is eaten each year, with at least 75 percent of people consuming the golden nectar on a regular basis. But over the last 20 years, the amount of honey produced in France has fallen dramatically. "A recent study shows that over 46 percent of honey in supermarkets is imported," Mélanie, a beekeeper based in Seine et Marne near Paris, told RFI. "France doesn't produce enough honey for its consumers, so importing honey is fair enough. But ...

Source: Modernghana