Beekeepers from North-Eastern Bulgaria want the authorities to confirm whether they knew EU-banned pesticides were being used in agriculture, Yasen Yanev, the chairman of the Bulgarian Free Beekeepers association that has samples showing the presence of over 20 pesticides, told a press conference on Tuesday.
At the conference, Yanev also confirmed that his association will warn President Rumen Radev and relevant ministries and that it is prepared to refer the matter to the European Commission and the EU Prosecutor’s Office.
“We are asking about the use of pesticides, although we already know the answer,” Yanev said referring to the samples from fields the association sent to foreign laboratories, with results showing the presence of more than 20 pesticides, half of which are banned in the bloc.
The beekeeper Petar Petrov from Tervel explained that in the area the mortality of honey insects is extremely high.
“Many people gave up on this business and continue to sell off, the sector is collapsing,” said Petrov, something that was also confirmed by Ivan Zhelyazkov from Dobrich.
On what causes animals to die, the beekeepers could not answer the question but noted that they do not have an adequate answer from the various government institutions involved in the problem.
Citizens from small municipalities in Northeastern Bulgaria have repeatedly reported the use of prohibited plant protection products, but the problem has not been solved so far. Northeastern Bulgaria, which is part of the vast historical region of Dobrudja, is one of the most fertile territories on the Balkan Peninsula, which has traditionally been used for growing cereals.
The beekeepers also want the government to check whether there are cartels that deliberately keep the purchase prices of Bulgarian honey the lowest in the EU. “There is money for the bee sector in Bulgaria, but it does not reach the producers”, said Yanev.
If the president does not respond to the letter within a month, the manufacturers are ready to protest, he added.
(Krassen Nikolov | EURACTIV.bg)
Source: euractiv.com
