Legislation on meliponiculture in Brazil: social and environmental demand

Abstract

The American stingless bees species have been used in management and breeding practices by local civilizations since the pre-Columbian era. Currently, many of these species are managed commercially and maintained in meliponaries. However, divergences exist among authors about the ecological utility of these practices. Some argue that meliponaries could serve to maintain local biodiversity while others argue that they have the opposite effect. Due to pressure from beekeepers and environmentalists there are efforts to draft specific rules that legislate production and market focusing on conservating native bees. In recent years, these norms have become more specific due to the use of empirical data from the scientific community and demands from social groups and producers. This paper presents a revision on Brazilian legislation as well its applicabilities and proposes alterations in the Environmental Crimes Law.