The head of the Slovenian Beekeeping Association Boštjan Noč said that cooperation based on bees' effective collaboration could lead to Slovenia's beekeeping knowledge being shared with other countries to a larger extent.

It could also support the development of beekeeping and other industries or initiatives, including tourism, environmental protection and food consumers' awareness.

Noč urged Slovenia to convince the EU to regulate honey trade, banning products whose origins are not specified.

The director of food supplements producer Medex Aleša Mižigoj stressed the importance of consumers' awareness in terms of bee products' quality, urging consumers to check ingredients and origins.

She pointed out that the price of honey is currently the lowest it has ever been in Slovenia and called for the government to regulate this issue and ensure that authentic products remain in the market and are not driven out of it by artificial, cheaper products.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Aleksandra Pivec considers beekeeping one of the most important sectors contributing to the country's food security.

She called for international cooperation which would improve the situation of beekeping and bees and support sustainable development and global environmental protection.

Pivec stressed the significance of the role bees play in the world's ecosystem and urged everybody to help tackling the issue of bees' gradual extinction.

The ministry has been drawing up the government's schedule of Bee Day-related activities until 2022, which will help raise awareness about the importance of bees and beekeeping.

The planned activities will also assist in fulfilling the Bee Day project's goals, such as promoting Slovenian beekeping and strengthening Slovenia's image of a green, healthy, proactive and innovative country.

"I believe that World Bee Day could be Slovenia's brand," said Noč, addressing the possibility of the government awarding a Golden Bee commendation in the future to innovative environmental projects aimed at protecting bees.

The UN approved Slovenia's proposal to proclaim 20 May World Bee Day in December 2017.