Yesterday, the President of the European Professional Beekeepers Association (EPBA), Bernhard Heuvel from Germany, visited Serbia.
The aim of his short visit is to bring honey samples for innovative accredited analysis by the ANA LAB laboratory in Pančevo.
He visited the ANA LAB laboratory, where the director Ivan Smajlović explained in detail the EIM-IRMS method, which has achieved high recognition for its results in all meridians, from the USA, through Germany and Russia, to India and China, in various projects and scientific exchanges. Now it is time for another practical “test” on the samples brought from Germany. Since highly accurate results are expected, it is also expected that after that its spread throughout Europe will begin, because the method is extremely precise and detects all types of foreign sugars that can be added to honey in the process of adulteration.
The guest had the opportunity to learn in detail about all parts of the honey analysis process using this new method, he had numerous questions to which he received answers. He showed high awareness of all honey analysis methods and an excellent understanding of the honey market. We agreed that almost all European laboratories today do not want to accept the reality that their analyses for detecting counterfeits are simply outsmarted by professional counterfeiters and their chemists. Only a combination of all existing analyses can reach a percentage of counterfeit detection of up to about 80%, and such a combination is almost 10 times more expensive than innovative methods. Currently, only three laboratories in Europe have innovative honey analyses that counterfeiters cannot outsmart for now, and it is expected that they will also be able to outsmart permanently. These are two laboratories that use the DNA method, one from Estonia and the other from Austria, and the third is ANA LAB from Serbia. We are eagerly awaiting the results of the ANA LAB analysis, which will now be compared with the DNA method for the first time, so to speak. Of these three laboratories, only ANA LAB currently has completed accreditation in accordance with EU standards.
The President of the European Professional Beekeepers Association (EPBA), Bernhard Heuvel, was welcomed by the President of Serbian Federation of Beekeeping Organizations -SPOS, and had a detailed conversation with him in his capacity as both the President of SPOS and, of course, first and foremost, the Vice-President of the European Beekeeping Association (EBA), and on behalf of the President of EBA, Boštjan Noč. First of all, let us clarify that the European Beekeeping Association (EBA) includes all beekeepers in geographical Europe, while the European Professional Beekeepers Association (EPBA) only includes professional beekeepers from the territory of the European Union.
The EBA’s proposal to the EPBA was to harmonize positions and adopt a common platform for acting towards the EU and the governments of our countries. Yesterday, it was agreed that an Agreement will be signed on this, by which both sides will commit to the goal of forming a common platform of action, but also to generally begin closer cooperation on this issue. There is currently no such common platform. There are several ideas, both EPBA and EBA, which were discussed in detail yesterday, but we do not believe that it is good to talk about them publicly, so as not to “open the cards” to honey counterfeiters. We agreed that we cannot wait for the completion of the work of the Honey platform working group formed by the European Commission, because the meetings of that working group are held once every 6 months, and if it continues at this pace, it will take 5 years to complete its work, and by then there will be no more beekeepers! Therefore, something needs to be done urgently, a final proposal is in sight, and it should be proposed to the European Union as an urgent solution that MUST stop counterfeiting and suppress it at its root already this year. Because, realistically, it is already too late, irreparable damage has been done to beekeeping throughout Europe and the world, but we have to fight for survival, because the current purchase prices are below the production cost price both in Europe and here. We are almost ashamed to announce what those prices are, because they do not depend on us beekeepers in any way, and beekeepers will only be further frustrated and disappointed.
We have received information that a large European market, which also exists in Serbia, is currently visiting both DNA laboratories for honey (in Estonia and Austria), and in the foreseeable future it will probably decide to apply one of the innovative methods for the honey it sells, and if it does so, other competing markets will follow suit. That would be very good, if part of the problem could be solved in this way.
We also agreed that it is very important to animate consumer associations, so that both, EPBA and EBA can work together with them to solve this global problem. There is great power in consumer associations. It is also necessary to work on consumer education, which was emphasized in today’s press statement by the President of SPOS and the Vice President of EBA, and SPOS recently took the first step in that direction by launching the innovative mobile application – MEDOTEKA (ALL ABOUT HONEY), through which consumers can reach their beekeeper quickly and easily, but also learn literally everything about honey that interests consumers.
It was agreed that Bernhard would visit Serbia again as soon as possible, but in such a way that he would spend more time getting to know SPOS and our beekeepers better, visiting the Plant “Naš med” and SPOS premises, as well as visiting some of our best beekeepers, as well as meeting with the SPOS Professional Beekeepers Group. We also invited him to attend the XVI National Beekeeping Fair on February 8th, and the accompanying Symposium dedicated to combating counterfeit honey on the market.
We are very satisfied with today’s meetings, everything was recorded, and the material will be used both for EPBA public announcements and for our(Serbian) national television.
Many thanks to Mr. Bernhard, we hope for his return visit to Serbia soon.
Vice – president of the EBA
MD Rodoljub Živadinović
