Greetings Minnesota Beekeepers,

2026 is off to a rough start for many Minnesota beekeepers who sent bees to California for almond pollination. Many are already reporting losses exceeding 65 percent in colonies sent to California. Those numbers are sobering. These are not fringe losses or isolated operations—they represent a serious blow to beekeepers heading into pollination season and the year ahead.

When losses stack up this early, it underscores how little margin for error exists in the current system—and how much risk commercial beekeepers are carrying on behalf of agriculture.

At the same time, there’s another pressure bearing down on Minnesota beekeepers that deserves equal attention: honey adulteration.

Fraudulent and mislabeled honey continues to undercut legitimate producers, distort markets, and erode consumer trust. When products that are not truly honey end up on store shelves at prices real producers cannot meet, it harms the entire industry—from large commercial operations to small direct-market beekeepers.

One of the most encouraging developments in this fight is the work being led internationally by Bernhard Heuvel, past president of the European Beekeeping Association. I had the opportunity to hear Bernhard speak at the American Beekeeping Federation convention in Mobile, and to speak with him directly about the challenges we face here in the United States. His message was clear: combating honey adulteration requires persistence, cooperation across borders, and the courage to name the problem honestly.

In Europe, beekeepers have pushed hard for stronger testing, clearer definitions of honey, and greater accountability in the supply chain. Attainable goals that we should also be focusing on here in the United States.

One innovative response to adulteration that some European beekeepers are implementing is setting up honey vending machines in high-traffic areas and selling directly to the public.

Minnesota is well-positioned to act on honey adulteration. We already have something many states lack: an established identity of honey. Minnesota honey is known for its quality and authenticity. That identity is an asset, and we need to lean into it—expanding it, defending it, and using it to push fake honey off the shelves.

This isn’t just about marketing. It’s about fairness. Beekeepers absorbing heavy colony losses cannot also be asked to compete against counterfeit products. When production costs rise and survival rates fall, honest markets become even more critical. Protecting honey integrity and protecting bees are not separate issues—they are tightly connected.

As an association, our role is to keep pushing on both fronts: acknowledging the hard realities of losses like those we’re seeing this winter, while also supporting enforcement, transparency, and education that strengthen real honey in the marketplace. Minnesota beekeepers—commercial, sideliner, and hobbyist alike—benefit when honesty is rewarded and fraud is not.

Wherever your bees are this winter, know that these challenges are being seen and taken seriously. Minnesota beekeepers have built a reputation for producing real honey and doing hard work under difficult conditions. Protecting that legacy—both in the bee yard and on the store shelf—is work worth continuing.

Mark Sundberg

President, Minnesota Beekeepers Association