Sakarya Honey Wins First Prize in Azerbaijan

High-quality, residue-free and conscious production has brought first prize to Sakarya honey. Six Beekeepers’ Associations from Türkiye, along with the President and board members of the Arıcılık Malzemeleri ve Arı Ürünleri Sanayicileri Derneği (ARMASAD), attended the 11th Azerbaijan Beekeeping Conference held in Azerbaijan.

Sakarya Chestnut Honey

As part of the conference, an international honey competition was organized. Among 27 honey samples from six countries, the Sakarya İli Arı Yetiştiricileri Birliği ranked first. In the evaluation, the Rize İli Arı Yetiştiricileri Birliği placed second, while the İstanbul İli Arı Yetiştiricileri Birliği came third. Sakarya was represented at the 11th Azerbaijan Beekeeping Conference by Union President Mustafa Ör.

In this international competition, the honey samples were evaluated based on naturalness, absence of residues, physical and chemical quality criteria, as well as taste, aroma and purity. As a result of assessments conducted by internationally authorized expert tasting and analysis juries, honey produced in Sakarya stood out in all these criteria and won the first prize.

Honey Produced in Sakarya Meets World Standards

Mustafa Ör, President of the Sakarya İli Arı Yetiştiricileri Birliği, stated that this achievement is not only an award but also concrete proof that Sakarya honey is produced in line with world standards.

Mustafa Ör, President of the Sakarya Province Beekeepers Association.

Ör emphasized that they are the only union in Sakarya to have received a first-degree agricultural organization certificate by fulfilling the Ministry’s criteria and that they will continue their work with determination. He added:

“Our next goals are to increase our membership without compromising production quality, expand organic and contract-based beekeeping activities, strengthen a conscious and sustainable production approach, further increase honey yield per hive—already above the national average—and permanently raise the income level of our producers.”

In 2023, the Sakarya İli Arı Yetiştiricileri Birliği exported honey to the United States and was ranked sixth among Türkiye’s top exporting companies by the İstanbul Su Ürünleri ve Hayvansal Mamuller İhracatçıları Birliği, receiving an award for its success.

According to 2025 data, there are 1,288 registered beekeepers in Sakarya under the Beekeeping Registration System. The number of active colonies stands at 80,140, and Sakarya’s honey production reached 1,602 tons in 2025.

Sakarya Province Beekeepers Association