In W34 in the honey landscape, analysts from the Center for Industry Expertise report that the average Russian consumes around 0.5 kilograms (kg) of domestically-produced honey annually. Notably, Kuban has emerged as a leading honey-producing region. Russian honey production has maintained a steady annual growth of 1% since 2017, yielding over 67 thousand metric tons (mt) in 2022. The top five regions for honey production include the Republic of Bashkortostan at 7 thousand mt, the Altai Territory at 4.6 thousand mt, the Voronezh Region at 4.4 thousand mt, Tatarstan at 4.1 thousand mt and the Krasnodar at 3.5 thousand mt. The Voronezh Region stands out among the leading areas with the highest growth rate in honey production, achieving an average growth of 21% over the last five years. The remaining top five regions experienced growth rates of no more than 5%.
Additionally, Russia had a total of 2.7 million bee colonies in 2022, distributed across various settings. Of these, 93.6% are in household setups, 1.7% in agricultural organizations, and 4.6% in peasant farms. Notably, honey production in peasant farms saw a significant growth of 14.3% in 2022, outpacing the overall increase of 3.8% across all farm categories. In 2023, despite a challenging season, overall results are positive in the Russian beekeeping industry. The honey yield per colony decreased by around 15% compared to the previous year due to weather factors, including mid-summer showers. This led to the failure of certain traditional honey collections, a common occurrence in beekeeping. However, other honey varieties thrived this year. Notably, the early spring collection and chestnut honey harvested in the latter half of summer yielded excellent results.
On August 24, the National Assembly of South Korea conducted a plenary session approving agricultural bills, including an amendment to the 'Act on the Promotion and Support of the Beekeeping Industry.' This amendment aims to address challenges in the beekeeping sector due to climate change. The revised act mandates that both the state and local governments must assess the impact of climate change on beekeeping and formulate appropriate measures. Furthermore, a 5-year 'Comprehensive Plan for Fostering and Supporting the Beekeeping Industry' will be developed, encompassing strategies to investigate, research, and assist with climate change-related damage to the beekeeping sector.
