“To protect bee health, regular preventive measures are being implemented. When moving bee colonies during flowering, quarantine rules must be strictly followed, apiaries should be about 5 km apart, and new colonies should be temporarily isolated. Queen bee breeding should take place in completely isolated locations, with no other queen bee farms within a 3-kilometer radius,” Galib Abdulaliyev, Head of Department at the Azerbaijan Food Safety Agency and the country’s Chief State Veterinary Inspector, told AZERTAC.
Noting that beekeeping is highly specialized, and that bees’ sensitivity to climate change and rapid population recovery require careful management, the department head emphasized that historically, Azerbaijan had Gray and Yellow Caucasian bees; but today, six breeds, including newly introduced ones, are used nationwide.
Galib Abdulaliyev stressed that bee care, feeding, and treatment must follow climate conditions, with strict compliance to food safety standards. The safety of bee products, particularly honey, requires adherence to limits for antibiotics, pesticides, and veterinary drugs.
Adding that efforts are ongoing to export honey and other bee products to EU countries, he emphasized: “Monitoring programs aligned with international requirements are being carried out, apiaries across the country are inspected, and samples are collected for laboratory testing.”