Continues to be dramatic in Sicily there drought situation, in some areas more than in others and some sectors are particularly suffering from the pressure. This is the case ofbeekeepingwho will see a product loss of 95%, an unpleasant forecast for those who live on this precious resource.
“The dream of every beekeeper is to be able to live off the work of their bees“, is what he says Elisa di Fede, beekeeper from Mezzojusoin the province of Palermo,”as it has been up to now, you work and struggle but you are satisfied because your bees produce honey, you go to the markets, sell it and move on. Now this is no longer the case“.
We are talking about a collapse that could rage coup de grace to a sector exhausted by the last two years, during which heavy shortages were recorded. From the 2017 we find a loss of production that appears to be constant over time. “But never has the situation been as dramatic as it is at this moment“.
As we have seen (CLICK HERE) it was a year that marked a strong one crisis of the sector, which has destabilized the production and consequently the marketing of honey. Sicily is there third Italian region for the beekeeping heritage and usually has a honey production equal to 20% of national production, therefore a very important resource. In addition to the sugar syrups made from wheat, rice and beetroot, inside the honey jars, which led consumers to purchase the famous honey “false” which we have already talked about, this sector is facing afurther challenge.
We are in spring, therefore in the phase of honey productionthe moment in which the professional beekeeper who has a large company begins to see the first income which allows him economic stability. What is going on?
“We are severely affected by the drought problem in Sicily. The blooms to date are not productive, you see the flower but there is no nectar. This has also been replaced by the desert sand, felt here in Sicily about a month ago, which has blocked the nectar structures of the flower, a difficulty for the bee itself“. Entire apiaries where there is not a drop of honey, “these are expenses for companies, you can ‘hold on’ for a year but then it becomes a problem, at a certain point you make a loss”.
Groups of beekeepers at the national level are currently agitating for the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) and to try to get some relief, to offer, as much as possible, economic support to beekeepers. There is a two-front coalition, those who need European economic support, in the same way as for the other livestock sectors and there are those who want to continue being beekeepers and live off the work of their bees.
Financial support is not the solution, can it help you cover one month’s expenses for the rest of the year? “With the very minimal production this season, if I had a very large company I wouldn’t have made it“.
This because “honey production is terrible, companies will take stock to understand who will move forward“. Further anomaly it was the anticipation of the blooms. “Due to drought the plant is stressed, the result is an early crystallization of honey which usually occurs at lower temperatures“. “The hope is that the plant is not compromised, so as to hope for summer flowering, that of the eucalyptus, for example”.
Spring production is the most important of the year and the situation is negative at a national level. “We are in the south due to the drought, in the north due to the constant rains. Drought is like a wound to the soul, you can’t see it but it’s there“. Rain makes you see its consequences automatically and immediately, drought does not. “It is a production problem that covers the entire national air, except for those small areas and situations where there has been a fair compromise, cleaner environments and less anthropization, small paradises where it has been possible to make honey“. But overall the beekeeping sector is suffering. “The concern is certainly for the future, we want to make a living from beekeeping“.
“Beekeeping is like military service, it puts you in front of a rigidity of rules that you don’t decide, it’s nature that decides“. Especially with the recent ones climate changes it is more difficult to act in time, the consequences cannot be foreseen.
