Exports of honey from Romania up 14 pct in Q1

Newsroom 06/07/2016 | 15:53

Exports of honey within and out of the European Union amounted in the first quarter of this year 2,442 tones, up almost 10 percent compared with the same period of 2015, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR).

Romania registered EUR 9.18 million in the first quarter from the honey export, with over 14 percent more than the similar period of 2015, when the deliveries on the external market brought in addition EUR 8.06 million.

On the other hand, the value of the honey imports in the mentioned period exceeded EUR 1.93 million for a quantity of 775.5 tones, while in the same period in 2015 there were EUR 1.5 million from 734 tones.

In the middle of June, the Romanian bee keepers requested the support of Ministry of Agriculture to face the „desperate situation” from this year, when the excessive rains and unfavorable weather reduced significantly the honey production. They claimed that 2016 would be a „disastrous year”, one of the most unfavorable year since the last 30 years.

The minister of Agriculture, Achim Irimescu, confirmed the difficult situation that the bee keepers are going through and announced that he is preparing a financial aid for this sector.

The statistics show that Romanians consume on average 450-500 grams of honey per year per capita, a figure which has been growing in the last 10 years.

Georgiana Bendre