World-famous Hungarian honey in danger!

Bees thought that spring had arrived, but now they have to deal with the minuses since the real winter weather regained the Carpathian Basin. Moreover, Hungarian honey producers struggle with the invasion of mites, too. Below are the details.

According to napi.hu, the milder winter in Hungary affected the honey producers significantly. Bees started to brood in January, which is quite natural when warmth returns but unusual in this month. Of course, 2023 was not the first mild winter in the last few years.

However, if minuses arrive again – as the weather turned quite wintery these days – bee families might be in danger. If they do not end brooding they will lose their food sources and die.

The chairman of the Hungarian association of honey makers, Péter Bross, told public broadcaster Kossuth Rádió that bees would remain active until the sun is shining and the temperature is high.

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In October, the bee families should be resting. Instead, last year, they were active and collected pollen. That was not a good sign because it is hard for them to transform the pollen they found then to their winter food source, i.e. honey. Besides, storing that pollen needs time, Mr Bross added.

He highlighted that the first frost has an extremely important task: it destroys the flowers and flowering plants, so bees no longer get pollen.

József Nyerges, a honey maker from Székesfehérvár, regards the changing weather as the most challenging hardship. In the last few years, winters have been warm and snow-free. But low temperatures can follow the mild winters in March, which can decimate the bee families. Moreover, recently acacias regularly froze down in March because of the unexpected cold. If the winter is not favourable for the bees, their loss might reach 20-30 percent.

However, honey makers can prepare for the winter. If they store enough food for the cold season, it can happen only in extreme situations that bees need additional sugar cake for nourishment.

But nowadays, bees in Hungary must cope with the big Asian mite, as well. Mr Nyerges says that they worsen the situation. The mites hide, and you can only reach them with chemical insect killers if the brooding of the bees ends. Therefore, honey makers cannot solve that problem now.