Honey Bee Health and Sustainable Honey Production
A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Farm Animal Production".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 May 2026 | Viewed by 2
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Honey is a product that is considered natural and healthy. It is consumed all over the world not only because of its taste, but also because of its health-promoting properties—nutritional, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, and even cardioprotective and neuroprotective. However, as the environment deteriorates, there is a growing concern that honey may contain unwanted chemical contaminants. Of particular concern are heavy metals (e.g., lead, cadmium, or mercury); pesticides; persistent organic pollutants (e.g., dioxins, PCBs, or PAHs); microplastics, which are present in the air, soil, and water, and which bees can transfer to the hive; and endocrine-disrupting substances that may migrate from packaging to honey, such as phthalates or bisphenol A. Most of these substances can negatively affect honeybee health, leading to changes in their populations. Sustainable honey production focuses on beekeeping practices that protect the environment and ensure the long-term health of bee colonies. This includes avoiding pesticides, providing diverse and local food sources, leaving enough honey for the bees' own survival, and managing hives with minimal processing.
This Special Issue aims to highlight research regarding the impact of sustainable practices in honey production on the environment, bee health, and the quality of bee products. Research articles will demonstrate that the use of these practices helps reduce the content of environmental pollutants in honey and other bee products, positively impact bee health and welfare, and enhance the ecosystems in which beekeeping occurs. All types of articles, such as original research, opinions, and reviews, are welcome.
Dr. Aleksandra Wilczyńska
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agriculture is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- honey bee
- pollinators
- biodiversity
- sustainable beekeeping
- sustainable practices
- honey production
- environmental pollutants
- quality of bee products
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