Morocco has been experiencing an extraordinary drought for several months, the hardest in 40 years. According to experts, this climate change has caused a phenomenon observed on a national scale: the disappearance of entire colonies of bees. The beekeeping sector is going through a disaster in Morocco.
Where have the Moroccan bees gone? The government, concerned about the phenomenon, launched a vast investigation. Several regions and especially southern Morocco are concerned. The largest and oldest traditional collective apiary in the world has not escaped the phenomenon. Not far from the city of Agadir, in the south-west of the country, the incredible site of Inzerki is also affected by the disappearance of bees.
Built in earth and wood, this site dates from the 16th century and is listed on the national heritage list. Five levels compartmentalized into squares of equal size make up this unique structure, both simple and complex. Inside are arranged cylindrical hives made of woven reeds and wrapped in earth mixed with cow dung. At the foot of this impressive device considered the oldest and largest collective apiary in the world, silence has replaced the buzzing of bees.
In less than two months, Brahim Chtioui, president of the association of hives of Inzerki, lost 40 hives out of 90: “With us here, there is no pesticide problem. There is no pollution problem, nor is there any problem with varroasis, the disease caused by a parasite. The only problem here is the drought. In 2019, I lost 100 hives, and 40 this year. Why the drought? Because bees don’t live long, only 45 to 50 days. But the queen lays the eggs when there are flowers, when the pollen comes in. If there are no flowers, there are no eggs. And all the bees die, the hive is over”.
According to Moroccan authorities, colony collapse syndrome is not due to a disease, but to climate change. And it exists in other European or African countries. Antonin Adam, researcher in bee science, notes that while drought may explain part of this situation, the vulnerability of bees to diseases, transhumance, intensive agricultural practices, but also the country’s desire to increase its production of honey, are factors that may explain colony collapse.
In the region of Fez-Meknes where the loss is estimated at 70%. Nabil Hinzil chairs the Jasmin cooperative. For him, these massive disappearances are due to the lack of training of beekeepers and the uncontrolled use of chemicals in his region. “Here in Morocco, we need a lot of high-level training so that beekeepers can have good practices in their hives. That’s the big problem, it’s at the level of how to manage the apiary. There are a lot of mistakes, for example in terms of treatments, using treatments that are within the standards, also working a little in the selection. Here in Morocco, there are few beekeepers working on selection. There is drought. There are diseases, viruses, there are bad practices. There are many things that are negative. This year, there are a lot of losses and the main cause was the drought, but also pesticides and chemicals”.
In Morocco, honey production has jumped 69% in 10 years. The country produced, according to the Ministry of Culture, nearly 8 tons in 2019, with more than one billion dirhams (101 million euros) in turnover.