Honey harvest Beekeepers harvest less honey than usual in 2024

This year's honey harvest was lower than the long-term average: Swiss beekeepers harvested an average of just 16 kilos of honey per bee colony.

This was revealed by a survey conducted by Apisuisse, as the beekeepers' association announced on Monday. Last year, they harvested a good 17 kilograms, while the long-term average is around 20 kilograms per bee colony per year.

Apisuisse attributes the decline primarily to the onset of winter in the second half of April. After a good March and a summery first half of April, the bees stayed in their hives and drew on their reserves. Further foraging flights were not possible under these conditions. May was also largely cloudy.

738 beekeepers from Switzerland and Liechtenstein took part in the Apisuisse survey.

SDA