There is a real risk that 45,000 tons of honey from South America would enter the European market through duty-free imports, the Association of Producers of Organic Bee Products warn. This could happen due to a trade agreement between the EU and MERCOSUR (Southern Common Market), BNR reported.

According to Bulgarian beekeepers, this could lead to a fall in the price of high quality Bulgarian honey, as well as to the closure of the EU market for it, as well as entry of honey with pesticides into the European market. Beekeepers want measures to limit the consequences for Bulgarian honey production. According to the EC Department of Agriculture, Bulgaria ranks among the last places in Europe when honey consumption is concerned. Bulgaria produces an average of 10 thousand tons of honey a year, out of which just 2 thousand are consumed on the Bulgarian market and the other 8 thousand tons are sold in Europe.