Good news for beekeepers: compensation for losses
The Lithuanian Beekeepers' Union informs that a survey of the leaders of the country's beekeepers' associations has revealed that, depending on the region, beekeepers have received only 30–50% of the usual average annual bee harvest this season.
The Lithuanian Beekeepers' Union has therefore appealed to the Ministry of Agriculture to help compensate for the losses incurred.
In order to ensure that as many bee colonies as possible survive the winter and that beekeepers in the country suffer as few losses as possible, the Ministry is guided by the Rules on the Provision of Support to Beekeepers for the Supplementary Feeding of Bees, approved by Order of the Minister of Agriculture of 26 June 2008, No 3D-357. Under the 6th Regulation, aid may be granted for supplementary feeding of bees.
About EUR 750 000 is earmarked annually for this measure, but so far these funds have not been sufficient to cover all applications. As a result, the amounts have often been reduced proportionately.
This year, the Ministry, aware of the difficulties beekeepers are facing due to the adverse weather conditions, decided to allocate an additional €219,000 at the meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee on 3 November. Thus, this year all applications will be granted in full, without a proportional reduction.
The Ministry is also considering the possibility of granting more financial aid to help beekeeping operators who have experienced difficulties this year.
This is also good news for beekeepers in the Lazdijai region, who have had a particularly difficult season this year due to the natural conditions and have produced less honey than usual.
But some commentators are counting with caution – there is nothing to rejoice about.
„€219,000 looks good, but out of the glossies we see that the compensation will only average around €1.5 per colony“, beekeepers are wondering.
For beekeepers with 150 bee colonies, this is a token amount, while for those with smaller holdings, there is no compensation at all.
„As they say, nobody looks compensation in the teeth“, – joke beekeepers.
