I have direct experience with organic honey production in Eastern Europe.
I worked on a honey project in Romania 10 years ago that produced organic
honey certified by Ecocert and the processing company is still in business
and doing quite well.  We worked on organic honey production in Eastern
Romania and in the West -Transylvania.   I am in touch with the group in
Eastern Romania to arrange a visit from a Moldovan group in 2 weeks and to
quote the manager:

 "Yes, Apicola has been working in ecological system since 2004 . . . and
we hope it will not stop soon.
Starting with 2014, we work only with Ecocert Romania.

The difference in price is higher than ever:

- 1.5 Euro/kg for poly
- 1.3 Euro/kg for acacia

I can tell you the organic hives must have certified organic beeswax
foundation and even the hive paint is regulated.  Each hive must have
individual records and the beekeepers and honey processor are audited
regularly.  The honey is checked for drug and pesticide residues, but all
honey going to the EU market is checked for residues.  We are visiting them
just after their annual audit and our objective is to see if we can produce
certified organic honey in Moldova.  I will let you know what we find on
our visit.

Bill Lord
Louisburg, NC
BeekeeingConsultingForDevelopment

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