A blow to beekeeping: up to 25% of bees died in Ukraine in 2024

Bee mortality in Ukraine reached 20-25% in 2024, significantly higher than pre-war levels, due to unfavorable weather conditions and reduced food sources, Volodymyr Postoyenko, director of the Institute of Beekeeping told news agency Interfax-Ukraine.

The high mortality rate is attributed to adverse weather conditions in the spring and summer, which led to a reduction in the area of honey-producing plants.

"The year 2024 was very challenging for beekeepers due to rapid climate change. In the fall period, white acacia is crucial for the development of bee colonies. During its blooming period, there were frosts across Ukraine. Bees did not get honey from it. Then there was a problem with an important honey plant—sunflower. Due to drought, its yield was low, it did not produce nectar, and the development of bee colonies did not occur. This led to high bee mortality, which in different regions ranged from 15-20%, and sometimes even 23-27%. On average, this figure was 20-25% across the country," Postoyenko said.

Previously, bee mortality in Ukraine was primarily linked to the lack of information about chemical treatments of fields by farmers. However, the state has implemented several legislative initiatives that have significantly improved the situation regarding informing beekeepers about chemical treatments.

The director of the Institute of Beekeeping noted that the industry lacks reliable statistics because only 5% of beekeepers are involved in industrial production, while the remaining 95% are households. These households often avoid paying taxes, making the reporting on their activities approximate.

Before the war, unofficial statistics estimated that Ukraine had 3-3.5 million bee colonies. Additionally, unofficial statistics indicate that the apiaries located in the currently occupied territories accounted for about 30% of the total number of apiaries in Ukraine before the war.

According to data from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, as of January 1, 2022, the number of bee colonies in Ukraine was 2.6 million. Over two years of full-scale war (2022-2023), the number of bee colonies decreased by 13.8% to 2.3 million.

As of January 2024, the top beekeeping oblasts included Khmelnytskyi (376,600 bee colonies), Vinnytsia (188,900), Kirovohrad (149,900), Zhytomyr (149,000), and Ivano-Frankivsk (140,500).

"As a result of the Russian Federation's military actions on the territory of Ukraine, the livestock sector, including the beekeeping industry, has suffered destructive and disruptive configurations," said the Ministry of Agrarian Policy.

On December 3, the Agriculture Ministry updated the requirements for honey.