The Regional Secretary for Agriculture and Forestry announced today on Pico Island that the Regional Government will propose, under the revision of POSEI 2020 programme, the inclusion of new aid for honey producers, given the importance of beekeeping for the sustainable development of regional agriculture.
"The Regional Government expects to have the agreement from producers' organisations for the implementation of this measure. It is justified, first and foremost, by the importance of beekeeping in the sustainable development of agriculture in the Azores and by the contribution of bees to the pollination of fruit trees, among others. Secondly, it is justified for the importance of balancing ecosystems and biodiversity," said João Ponte on the second day of the Regional Government's statutory visit to Pico.
The government official spoke on the sidelines of the visit to a honey production unit that annually extracts an average of 8 to 10 tonnes of honey from about 400 hives; its project was approved under PRORURAL+ with an investment of more than 62 thousand Euros.
João Ponte also stated that this aid will contribute to the dynamics of the sector, through the granting of aid set at 24 Euros per hive. producers of honey certified under the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) will be exempted from apportionment.
In addition to enhancing the visibility of Azores honey, this specific support under POSEI will contribute to increasing consumer safety as far as the aid will only be granted to producers who comply with legal requirements concerning the operating conditions of extraction sites and honey processing spaces.
"We are certain that this type of measure will stimulate and strengthen the emergence of cooperatives in this sector, seeing that the aid provides for a 20% increase in the case of honey being delivered to producers' organisations," noted the Regional Secretary.
João Ponte also revealed that this aid falls within the Strategic Plan for Beekeeping in the Azores, a document already completed that will be under analysis at the meeting of the Council of the Government with a view to its approval and subsequent implementation in coming years.
There are currently 449 beekeepers in the Azores.