52 beekeepers from Bachevsk, Sopych, Tolstodubovoy and Korenka, Glukhovsky district of Sumy region reported the mass death of bees. According to preliminary estimates, more than 700 bee families lost apiaries.
According to the beekeeper Nikolai Rudenko from Volnaya Sloboda, almost 50 bees died out in 50 hives. On June 4-5, workers at Glukhov-Agroinvest LLC processed soybean fields in Bachevsk without warning, the beekeeper says.
“The bees returned home and fell. We are sure that the evaporation radius affected rapeseed, acacia, and linden nearby. This is a disaster for us. What to do with honey now, can it be consumed? There are many questions ... The main thing is who will compensate the losses? Agroinvest refuses to admit its guilt, does not compensate us, ”the beekeeper said.
The insect mortality lasted several days, so the beekeepers gathered and blocked the exit of agricultural equipment, which was supposed to cultivate the field. They wrote complaints to the district state administration and sanitation. Several dozens of people have signed up, demanding that the perpetrators be found.
The beekeepers met with the management of the company. According to the director general of the agricultural enterprise Nikolay Bogaychik, this is the first such case in society, but their specialists are not ready to confirm guilt.
“We are more than anyone interested in finding out the truth. We are waiting for the results of the examination. Everything is ambiguous there. We treated with a proven tool, warned the village council. Bees fall or all at once, or never. Here, for a week, insects die daily. There, Dobrobut also processed the fields, and private owners, and Agroinvest was accused. We sent both soy and bees for analysis, ”said Nikolai Bogaychik.
He also added that due to the blocking of the equipment, the enterprise may lose its yield, because the caterpillar is already eating up the plants. The village chairman of the village of Sopych, Vasily Ushachov, confirmed that Agroinvest warned of work, worked at night. Now the beekeepers plan to order a separate examination.
