"This year has been better than last year, though it has not been above average," Jure Justinek of the Slovenian Beekeepers' Association told the press in Lukovica.

Having an average season is good news for Slovenian beekeepers as they produced only 1,031 tonnes of honey in 2013, while last year was a disaster, with only 470 tonnes of honey collected.

Justinek explained that there were more than 10,000 beekeepers in Slovenia, while the active honey collection season lasted from the end of April to the end of June.

The harvest of meadow flower honey was very good this year, while there was almost no honey produced from rapeseed, as the areas where it is usually cultivated were hit with floods last autumn, he added.

Beekeepers were doing very good in May, after which cyclical periods of hot and cold weather with rain started taking turns. "This is why we have ended up with an average harvest."

A 2,000 tonne harvest is not sufficient to supply the entire country, as Slovenians on average consume two kilograms of honey per capita. "But in comparison with last year there will be some more Slovenian honey," Justinek said.

The head of the Beekeepers' Association, Boštjan Noč, added that the number of massive bee deaths was decreasing, attributing this to preventive campaigns, including in the media.