European beekeeping in the 21st century: Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats

Abstract

Human interest in bees predates history. The majority of European beekeepers keep bees as a hobby. However, beekeeping is also a very serious business not a quiet rustic craft symbolic of a gentle age. It is essential to us all. It is an increasingly commercial activity, the purpose of which is to raise revenue-earning capacity directly through hive products and indirectly through the provision of pollination services. It is this globalization of apiculture and the fierce drive of competition that has caused many of the problems and difficulties that we face today.