Profitability factor in beekeeping

Profitability accounting in beekeeping has been carried out in Finland since 2013.  In recent years, the representativeness of the statistics has improved to meet the FADN recommendation of around 2% of the population.

Cost awareness and profitability in the beekeeping sector has been poor. In addition, for many of the smallest producers, beekeeping is mainly a hobby activity, with little attention paid to profitability.

Profitability can be improved by specialising in, for example, organic farming, species honey production or pollination services, but also by cost management. Larger producers tend to have lower production costs per kg of honey, which increases profitability.

Most of the income in beekeeping comes from the sale of honey, so in addition to costs, the price and quantity of honey sold are crucial factors for profitability. The profitability factor varies from year to year depending on the production conditions, but the main explanatory factor for profitability is the size of the farm (number of hives). The profitability coefficient of all the farms monitored has varied between 0.27 and 1.03 between 2018 and 2023. In 2023, the revenue from honey sales per enterprise was less than €12 000. In addition to honey, income was also generated from the sale of other bee products and services. 

This indicator shows the development of profitability in beekeeping. By dividing the entrepreneurial income by the sum of the wage and interest requirements, a profitability factor for relative profitability is obtained.

The data for this indicator are taken from Luke's profitability accounting data.

The indicator will next be updated in autumn 2025.