There are many problems, but they all boil down to one main one – the consequences of unfavorable weather conditions. For this reason, there is little pollen, little nectar, little honey. Only about 3-3.5 thousand tons of honey will be produced in Moldova in 2025, which is one and a half times lower than the median production of this product in the country during the last 5 years. In the management of the National Association of Beekeepers of Moldova ANARM believe that the resource of commercial honey harvest-2025 will be even lower – about 2-2.5 thousand tons.
In this regard, it is worth considering that, according to the customs service of the Republic of Moldova, in the period from January to July 2025, the country exported 2.4 thousand tons of honey for $6.43 million. Mostly it was the production from honey harvests of previous years. In 2024, the export of Moldovan honey amounted to 4.2 thousand tons, including 3.7 thousand tons of this product arrived on the EU market.
External deliveries of Moldovan honey have intensified due to the fact that Moldovan honey is gradually replacing Ukrainian honey on the EU market. This year, the European Commission canceled the unlimited free import of Ukrainian honey to the European market. Instead, Ukraine was allocated a relatively small duty-free quota, which, incidentally, Ukrainian suppliers have long since chosen.
Meanwhile, honey traders from Moldova continue to use the free trade regime with the EU. A “window of opportunity” could remain open for them in the European market during the whole 2025-26 season. Well, or at least a “window of opportunity”. If they would replenish their commodity stocks with fresh honey.
However, according to the words of Ion Maxim, ANARM executive director, in 2025 the take from acacia and linden trees in Moldova was insignificant – not for the export of varietal honey. Worse, if in normal years beekeepers pump out an average of 25 kg of flower honey from one hive (mainly from sunflower, which accounts for 70-90% of the honey harvest in Moldova), this year in the southern and central zone of the country this figure has fallen to the level of 5-12 kg.
In the north of Moldova the situation is better. It is still difficult to judge how much – the honey collection from sunflower in the northern regions of the country will be finished this week.
According to the first impression of beekeepers from these regions, the picture is mixed. Within one apiary there are hives, which yield up to 50 kg of honey. But there are also hives from which there is no point in pumping out honey – there is too little of it.
Obviously, the very different honey yield potential of bee families from the same apiary is not due to different beekeeping conditions. Given the situation, some beekeepers believe that this winter there will be a “natural selection of bee families”. In the sense that the weak ones will die out.
ANARM specialists claim that a number of field crop hybrids are characterized by low nectar and pollen formation. Moreover, some corn fields were treated with phytosanitary treatments during the flowering period, and this had a negative impact on the health and performance of bees. As a result, due to the lack of nectar and pollen, bee families were not able to create sufficient forage reserves in summer, which hinders their full natural development before wintering. And not all beekeepers have the means to feed weak bee families.
According to experts of the industry association, it takes at least 10-15 kg of sugar and expensive protein food additives to feed one bee family until October and, subsequently, three-four months in the cold period of the year. The costs can amount to many thousands of lei.
According to the National Food Safety Agency (ANSA), there are 3,089 officially registered apiaries in Moldova. In total, there are about 206 thousand bee families in the country. About 2,000 beekeepers are registered users of the online information system BeeProtect, which focuses on the transfer of information and sanitary and veterinary warnings for apiaries.
The ANARM association has sent an official request to the MAIA Ministry of Agriculture and Food, asking for urgent intervention and support for the sector.
“We hope that by the fall a decision will be made on real assistance to the sector – in the form of sugar from state reserves, or cash subsidies for fodder or medicines for beekeeping,” says Ion Maxim. – However, without a clear accounting of the number of bee families on officially registered apiaries, this process may be difficult to implement. In order to avoid organizational difficulties and claims from the inspection authorities, it might make sense to provide state aid to all registered users of the BeeProtect system as a one-time exception in the current crisis situation.
In order to prevent a drastic reduction in the number of bee families and honey production in 2026, ANARM proposes:
- Allocate 10 kg of sugar per bee family (or equivalent in cash) from the state reserve.
- Reduce the VAT rate on natural honey to 5-9%. That is, to the level adopted in most EU countries. This is a very good way to stimulate honey consumption by the Moldovan domestic market.
- To amend the Government Decision (No. 455, 2017), which will make it possible to classify beekeeping as a strategic industry that is obligatorily supported by the state in case these industries have suffered significant damage from natural disasters.
