Until the end of this month, it will not be necessary to travel to Azerbaijani regions to buy cheap and at the same time high-quality honey.
The 24th Republican Fair for the Exhibition and Sale of Beekeeping Products has been taking place in Baku for the past two days near the Ganclik metro station.
The fair, which will last until September 29, was jointly organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and the public trade union “Association of Azerbaijan Beekeepers.” 275 beekeepers from 39 regions of the country are expecting buyers for about 120 tons of products they brought to the fair, which is 20% more than last year’s fair.
Of course, the main thing that is offered to buyers is honey – 105 tons. In addition, bee milk, pollen, tuberculosis, homogenates, extracts, ointments and creams are also sold at the fair. Employees of the Food Safety Agency took samples of the products with the participation of beekeepers and examined them in laboratory conditions. The sale of products whose indicators do not meet the standards of quality and food safety is not allowed.
According to the observations of “Report”, each kilogram of honey is sold this year for at least 30 manats, which is about five manats more than last year.
Leyli Abbasova, a farmer from the Ganja-Samukh region, complains about the lack of buyers: “The fair opened yesterday, but we cannot sell our products. There are few buyers. Perhaps many people do not know about it yet. I hope the situation will change by the end of the month.”
A businessman who sells honey from the plains, mountains, blackthorn and liquorice explains the price increase for several reasons: “This year, there was a lot of rainfall in the spring, which affected productivity. In addition, the equipment used in beekeeping has become more expensive this year, and at the same time, bee diseases have increased production costs.”
As every year, Kalbajar honey is selected from other honeys due to its price. One kilogram costs at least 40 manats.
Mehdi Ismayilzadeh, a beekeeper from Kalbajar, is not satisfied with the sales situation: “In addition to honey, I also sell pollen and bee pollen. Sales are normal. This year we moved bee families to the Kalbajar meadows, which increased our productivity. In general, the honey obtained in this region is very tasty. It originates from Kalbajar. Although I live in Shamkir, my honey is sold there at a good price.
Another farmer representing Kalbajar, Adalat Aliyev, said that he could not find buyers for his products: “There are no sales yet, but I hope to sell a lot of products. I have been participating in the fair for three years. Last year, the purchasing power was high. People went to the fair in the name of Kalbajar honey. That’s why I think sales will be good this year. I sell all kinds of honey products and I want to increase their number.”
Gulshan Huseynova, a beekeeper from Dashkasan, sells forest, flower and May honey: “The price of honey varies depending on the type. The price starts from 30 manats. I have a family of 130 bees. I have not made any sales yet. I come to the fair every year. Last year’s sales were satisfactory.”
Registration for the fair was carried out online via the website bal.kendden.az. At the fair, beekeepers were allocated the appropriate number of places proportionally to the number of beekeepers in the regions where they operate.
To participate in the fair, each beekeeper must have at least 40 bee families, according to the declaration made when registering their beekeeping farms in the Electronic Agricultural Information System (EKTIS) before July 26. Each beekeeper was allowed to sell a maximum of 400 kilograms of honey and a maximum of 30 kilograms of beeswax at the fair.
