Protecting Malta's native honey bee requires more than the €1 million action plan put forward by the government, local beekeeping and environmental organisations warned Saturday. While welcoming the strategy as a positive step forward for beekeepers across Malta and Gozo, the groups cautioned that limited funding and key ambiguities could jeopardize efforts to save the endemic subspecies from extinction.
The government recently announced a seven-measure package designed to tackle the surging population of the Oriental hornet. Though the predatory insect has long inhabited the Maltese islands, its population spiked dramatically over the past season, devastating honeybee colonies, crippling local honey production, and raising public safety concerns. Over the summer, many local beekeepers suffered severe losses, with some losing their entire colonies despite government investment in traps.
The newly announced action plan aims to support affected beekeepers and safeguard local pollination through targeted schemes, including breeding initiatives and compensation for lost production. However, the signatory organisations pointed out that €1 million may prove insufficient to cover all objectives, especially since the exact allocation of funds across the seven schemes remains unspecified.
A primary area of concern centers on Scheme 2, which provides financial aid to help beekeepers re-establish lost colonies. Under the proposed terms, government assistance is conditional on a specific proportion of new colonies consisting of the local Maltese honey bee. The groups called for immediate clarification on whether this proportion represents a fixed percentage or specific numerical quota, as well as the exact safeguards that will be implemented to verify the bees' variety.
To prevent the Maltese honey bee from disappearing entirely, the organisations urged the government to restrict Scheme 2 assistance exclusively to the native subspecies. At the same time, they warned against establishing overly restrictive or unattainable standards for what defines a Maltese honey bee. Given the difficulty of finding pure stock in the wild, the groups proposed that the definition should encompass bees of Maltese lineage that have survived recent challenges, even if they are not genetically pure.
Despite these concerns, the organisations expressed optimism that carefully planned measures and appropriate policy adjustments can successfully preserve the local genetic heritage and build long-term resilience within the beekeeping sector.
The joint statement was sent to Prime Minister Robert Abela, Deputy Prime Minister Ian Borg, Environment Minister Miriam Dalli, and Agriculture Minister Anton Refalo.
It was signed by the Malta Beekeepers Association, Beesavers Malta, Earth Systems Association, Friends of the Earth Malta, Beenovation Foundation, and the Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee.