Boost for beekeepers

Betty Henderson SPAIN’S Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, announced on Monday, March 20 that the country will request aid from the European Union to support the struggling beekeeping industry. The ministry also put its support behind measures to address issues facing the wine industry due to problems with distilleries.

According to Planas, the Spanish beekeeping industry is in a difficult situation due to high imports of honey from third party countries, particularly China and Ukraine, which have re ­

SPAIN’S crime rate stands at 48.8 per 1,000 inhabitants at the end of 2022.

The total number of criminal offences recorded last year totalled 2,325,358 offences, of which 1,949,852 (83.9 per cent of the total) corresponded to the category of conventional crime, which represents a reduction of 1.6 per cent over 2019.

The year 2019 is the statistical reference year as it was the last one not affected by the restrictions imposed to duced due to geopolitical issues.

Spain will request aid from Brussels for the industry and will also push for country ­ of ­ origin labelling for honey, a topic that was previously discussed by EU countries in January, and which could promote the industry in foreign markets.

The Minister spoke about French plans to reduce surplus wine in the market. If the European Commission agrees to the French plan, Spanish ministers will also support it.

Planas will also pressure Europe to take action to address the tariffs imposed by the United States on some varieties of Spanish olives.