The Cabildo will promote a specific line of support for beekeeping after the honey sector has been seriously damaged by the forest fire that affects Tenerife, with the loss of 25% of the hives. The counselor of the Primary Sector, Valentín González, called this Tuesday the Island Beekeeping Table where professionals from the sector are represented, with the intention of carrying out a diagnosis of the situation and establishing the bases of support from the insular Corporation.
González indicates that since it is a fire that is still active, there are areas that have not been able to be evaluated, but It is estimated that between 2,500 and 3,500 hives have burned. “In addition, there is a very significant number that have not been burned, but that have been affected by the heat, causing the bees to flee or die, so those colonies will hardly be viable,” he clarifies.
The beekeeping sector has been seriously affected by this fire, since a large number of hives were within the usual honey production schedule in the transhumance of Teide in search of summit honey (broom The Teide and Malpica, mainly) and chestnut, in the chestnut areas of the northern median. Given this situation, Valentín González explains that the Cabildo is going to promote “a specific line of support” for beekeeping, “so that the effects of fire in this sector can be minimized, as far as possible.” In addition, the Primary Sector counselor reported on the line of subsidies for complementary feeding of Tenerife bees for this year destined for the island’s beekeepers’ associations.
«We are going to work in coordination with the Government of the Canary Islands so that aid reaches beekeepers effectively. We are very aware of the importance of beekeeping, as a primary activity with a long tradition in rural areas, as well as of the bees themselves as pollinating agents that are responsible for the conservation of numerous plant species, the environment and biodiversity,” said the CEO, which is why he specified that “we are going to use all the means in our power to alleviate the effects of the fire.”
Finally, González has called for a new Island Beekeeping Roundtable to be held within a month to have a more detailed analysis of the situation of beekeeping on the Island.
