Bees are also suffering from climate change.
The National Union of French Beekeeping (Unaf) is sounding the alarm before three days in June devoted to these pollinating insects, essential allies of agriculture.
"Beyond the threats that have weighed on beekeeping for years - impact of pesticides, monoculture, disappearance of hedges, Asian hornet, varroa (a parasite) - we have another challenge, that of climate change", explained to AFP Henri Clément, beekeeper and spokesperson for Unaf.
The mortality rate in the hives "is on average around 30% per year, it's colossal", he recalls.
2021, "the worst year for French beekeeping"
"Beekeepers, to maintain their livestock, are forced to replenish them with extra work and extra cost," he continues.
"If there weren't beekeepers to replenish the herds, we would already be short of bees on the territory", warns the beekeeper, while they provide "35% of our food resources" through pollination .
With the impact of climate change, "harvests are becoming more and more irregular" and "this makes life very difficult for professional beekeepers", he describes.
Hives can suffer from different impacts of climate change: fires, hail, floods, emphasizes Henri Clément.
2021 "was the worst year for French beekeeping", with less than 10,000 tonnes produced.
2022 has started well in most regions thanks to a mild winter, says Henri Clément, but “we are extremely worried with the drought that is coming”: the plants, if they suffer, do not produce nectar.
Beekeepers with more than 50 hives can benefit from the agricultural calamity device.
However, 90% of farmers have less than 10 hives.
The “Apidays” days, an annual national meeting, will be held this year from June 23 to 25, with around sixty free events and activities planned across France.
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