Hello, Nicanor. Earlier in September, I was in Cahul, on the occasion of an event aimed to support young entrepreneurs. The project competition was won by a group of guys who came up with the idea of creating a marketplace for honey producers in Moldova. That's why I would like to ask you, as a professional, how many honey producers are there in Moldova? I am interested because if there are only around 100 or 200, a marketplace oriented just on honey products may have low profitability. 

On the contrary, such a market could be successful. I don't have accurate statistics, but I think there are about 6-7 thousand amateur beekeepers in Moldova and between 500-700 large beekeepers.

And where do we draw the line between amateur beekeepers and large producers?

Let's consider an amateur a person or a family that owns between 20 and 100 hives of bees. If they have around 200-300 hives, they are already a large producer, according to Moldovan standards. Generally in the world, the number of hives a person can keep depends essentially on the level of automation. With a high level of automation, a beekeeper can maintain up to 300 hives. For example, moving hives from one place to another is also problematic. When moving hives in Moldova, you will see about six people and a couple of machines involved. Whereas, if the mobility of the hives is assured from the outset, this task can be handled by one person.

Now the situation is clearer to me. Around 7-8 thousand "players" in the industry are enough for an organic honey market to have a chance of attracting customers. Back to Regina Naturii. How many years have you been working in beekeeping?

I started in 2014 in the village of Costești, Ialoveni district, with 100 hives. Today, we have about 500 hives as well as our own production for packing and cleaning honey.

Are 500 hives enough to provide the raw material for production?

No, we are also buying honey. When we reached 500 hives, we reviewed our development strategy and decided to focus on production. Honey, like wine, can of course also be sold „in bulk” But selling packaged honey or honey in combination with other products is much more profitable.

However, do you also sell honey in bulk?

We export up to 1,000 tonnes of barrelled honey a year.

And what are the export destinations?

Europe. Romania, Poland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands. But, as I said, we are interested in exporting packaged honey and honey combined with other products.

So let's take things one step at a time. What can you produce?

We have started to produce honey with nuts and with added dried fruit. These are jars of honey with walnuts, almonds, and cashew nuts. In addition to nuts, we have started experimenting with canning honey with dried apricots and cherries.

Honey with cherries? Can I taste them already? Regina Naturii is available in Moldovan chains, right?

Sure. You can find our honey in the following supermarkets: No.1, Dulcinella, Metro, Green Hills, Linella, Velmart, George Standard, and soon in Kaufland. But you won't be able to taste the cherry honey yet, as we are still producing this kind of product.

When I was told about Regina Naturii, I learned that you are known, in particular, for your diverse honey packaging. Is that really so?

Indeed, we pack honey not only in jars. A separate area of our business is the production of portioned honey for the HoReCa sector. This is not just the usual small plastic packaging, but also honey in packets. There are 50 single-use packets of 12 g each in a packet, which you can use instead of sugar for tea or coffee. However, when it comes to jars of honey, since the packaging is part of marketing, we don't limit ourselves to just one type of honey jar. We have both regular jars with a circular cross-section, as well as some hexagonal ones in the shape of a honeycomb.

Have you set up the production sector on an investment basis?

Of course, we did. Without subsidies and credit lines, this would not have been possible. But now, in terms of equipment, we have practically everything we need. Marketing comes to the fore. Both for the domestic market and export destinations.

Did you also take advantage of the Invest Moldova Agency programs?

First of all, they helped us to enter the Romanian market. In 2021, the Agency conducted a study on the Romanian market, looking for importers interested in importing Moldovan products. As a result, we organized online meetings with regional Romanian distributors. In total, we had six meetings where we managed to better understand the Romanian market and its needs. In my opinion, Moldovan producers should not go to the big chains, but to the local ones, where the emphasis is on organic products and where the quality and taste of Moldovan honey will be appreciated.

One last question. You have made me curious. When will it be possible to taste honey with cherries and apricots?

I think you will be able to taste it before New Year's Eve.