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Our cooperative model places the protection of the ecosystem and the well-being of the community at its heart. We translate these values into concrete, measurable activities and initiatives. Our objectives range from protecting natural habitats to raising awareness, whilst also promoting research and development in the field of beekeeping and engaging with local communities.

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Organic Honey

Certified honey, the result of a careful approach to the local area

Our commitment to producing organic honey is deeply rooted in CONAPI’s values. We have been adhering to organic standards since 1991, having helped draft the European regulations for organic beekeeping. Today, our cooperative is Europe’s leading producer of organic honey.

In 2025, we launched the campaign ‘Organic honey: as certain as the future I want’ and the website mielebioconapi.com to raise awareness, particularly among younger generations, about choosing organic products.

What is organic honey?

Organic honey is produced in accordance with strict requirements, such as the use of native bee breeds, natural feeding, limits on permitted treatments, the placement of hives away from sources of pollution, and hives made from natural materials. The processing involves the utmost respect for the product, just as nature intended. Choosing organic honey therefore means supporting certified farming practices and promoting the protection of natural habitats and the health of ecosystems.

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Bees and urban allotments

Bees, the ‘sentinels’ of urban health

‘Bees and Urban Gardens’ is an environmental biomonitoring project that uses bees as indicators of the health of urban ecosystems. By analysing beehives located in urban settings, this initiative, promoted by CONAPI, tracks bee mortality and the presence of pollutants, including 10 heavy metals and 400 pesticides.
Since 2017, the initiative has involved 7 Italian cities and more than a million bees, with the aim of raising awareness amongst urban communities about public health.

Piemonte

Officina Verde Tonolli
Turin
At the Officina Verde Tonolli, organisations, volunteers and local residents are transforming an urban space into a place of shared discovery: here, people learn how to tend a vegetable garden, observe life in a pond, learn about the world of bees, and identify plants, flowers and herbs. It is an open space where curiosity and nature come together, providing an opportunity to play, read, chat and take part in activities organised by local organisations. A small social ecosystem that thrives thanks to collective commitment.

Lombardia

Cascina Biblioteca
Milan
Cascina Biblioteca is a place where social inclusion, personal support services and employment support form part of a single community-based vision. The cooperative’s activities and projects address the needs of the people it encounters every day, creating pathways for shared growth. In the apiary managed by Vittoria Mambretti, samples are taken for monitoring purposes, transforming this space into a valuable observation point for bee life and urban biodiversity.
La Cordata
Milan
For over thirty years, La Cordata has been building support networks for those in vulnerable situations, offering a warm welcome, social and educational support, and short- and long-term accommodation. The co-operative creates ‘places and spaces for living’ that bring together people’s needs and resources, thereby becoming a resource for the local community itself. Its social and educational work fosters cohesion, inclusion and meaningful relationships, transforming every project into an opportunity for active participation.
Via Padova Allotments
Milan
At the Via Padova Community Gardens, the Legambiente Reteambiente Milano Association promotes a model of active citizenship that combines caring for green spaces, environmental education and community involvement. The gardens become an open-air laboratory where visitors can discover urban biodiversity, learn about the world of bees and experiment with sustainable practices. This project strengthens the bond between people and their local area, transforming a shared space into a hub for socialising, learning and collective responsibility.

Emilia-Romagna

DumBO
Bologna
In the DumBO project, an urban area undergoing transformation becomes a space for social experimentation thanks to collaboration between local businesses, institutions and organisations. This is where BeeBo was born: a social beekeeping initiative that involves local residents and volunteers in activities centred on bees, curiosity and active participation. The apiary, managed by beekeeper and CONAPI member Zeid Nabulsi, is at the heart of the project: a space where people can observe nature, come together and build new forms of community centred on sustainability.
CAAB
Bologna
Next to the CAAB, Bologna’s hub for agri-food innovation, the Urban Gardens were established in 2016: one hundred small plots entrusted to young couples and designed as a place for socialising, growing crops and looking after the local area. It was here that the first two beehives were placed, marking the start of the ‘Bees and Urban Gardens’ monitoring project – an initiative that combines beekeeping, environmental observation and civic participation. Today, the monitoring continues in the Urban Gardens at Podere San Ludovico, transforming these spaces into a focal point for urban biodiversity and for dialogue between people, nature and the city.
Malmerendi
Faenza
In Faenza, the Malmerendi Civic Museum of Natural Sciences is hosting the sixth site of the project, with an apiary situated in the park in front of the museum. An environmental monitoring programme for the hives is currently underway here, organised by Giorgio Della Valle of Legambiente Lamone Faenza. This initiative combines science communication, biodiversity conservation and local community involvement, transforming the museum and its park into a prime vantage point for observing the life of bees and the quality of the urban environment.

Lazio

Museum of Civilisation
Rome
In Rome, the monitoring station is located on the roof of the Museum of Civilisation, where archaeologist and beekeeper Mario Mineo has set up an apiary as part of the educational project ‘To bee or not to be’, launched by the Museum in 2019. The initiative integrates the museum’s exhibits with environmental and ethical themes, viewing bees as true ‘sentinels of the environment’. It is an initiative that combines public outreach, sustainability and participation, offering visitors a unique vantage point on urban biodiversity.

Puglia

FACELIA Association
Bari
In Bari, the Facelia Association brings together a group of young beekeepers who, in 2019, thanks to a PIN grant scheme, created a space dedicated to raising awareness of the world of bees. This led to the creation of the Bari Japigia Educational Apiary, an urban beekeeping project designed to introduce local residents, schools and families to biodiversity and sustainability. It is an open space where visitors can observe the life of the hive at close quarters, understand the role of bees in the environment and take part in educational programmes that strengthen the bond between the community and nature.

Basilicata

Urban allotments in the Macchia Romana neighbourhood
Potenza
In the Macchia Romana neighborhood of Potenza, the Urban Gardens serve as a shared space where residents, families, and volunteers cultivate nature, relationships, and community engagement. The gardens serve as a place for gathering and learning, where tending to plants goes hand in hand with environmental awareness and the promotion of urban biodiversity. The apiary and monitoring activities strengthen the bond between the community and the local area, transforming this green space into a hub for education, sustainability, and community life.

Research and development

Knowledge that breathes with the bees

Our work goes beyond honey production, the promotion of beekeeping and raising community awareness; we are also actively involved in research and development projects to protect bees and promote verifiable environmental practices. We collaborate with universities, research bodies, international associations and companies.

Environment and Bees

CONAPI collaborates with the Centre for Agriculture and the Environment, the Department of Agri-Food Sciences and Technologies, and the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Bologna to promote best practices for the protection of the environment and bees.

Honey culture and production

Together with specialist observatories and biologists, we carry out studies on trends in honey consumption. We collaborate with the National Honey Observatory.

Private label

We are a strategic partner in the development of private label projects, guaranteeing high volumes with full quality assurance and traceability.

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Institutional commitment

Action at European level

We bring the voice of our beekeepers to national and European institutional, strategic and trade association forums, to defend the cooperative model and a vision of agriculture that is compatible with habitats and communities.

BeeLife – European Beekeeping Coordination

We have been founding members since 2013 and play an active role in this European organisation, serving as a strategic hub for the protection of the beekeeping sector by monitoring European regulations.

Masaf

We play a leading role in various technical working groups set up by the Ministry, both for the beekeeping sector and for agriculture, with shared objectives of land conservation.

ASSOCIATION-LEVEL FORUMS

From organisations promoting organic farming to fair trade and legal compliance, we collaborate with groups that champion quality and ethical standards.

Cooperative
sector

We promote the cooperative model as an example of resilience and innovation, and are members of trade associations at national and European level.

Transparency

Tender notices

Emilia-Romagna Regional Rural Development Programme 2014/2020 (EU Regulation No. 1305/2013)

Project for industrial, technological and energy innovation to improve the efficiency of the Italian beekeeping sector.
1 January 2020

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Emilia-Romagna Rural Development Programme

“Investments aimed at introducing processing facilities to add value to members’ beekeeping raw materials through the creation of innovative health products and dedicated packaging” submitted under Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 – RDP 2014/2020 Measure 4 – Operation Type 4.2.01 “Investments aimed at agro-industrial enterprises through individual and system-based approaches” – 2017 Regional Public Notice – System-based approach.
1 June 2026

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Transparency – Law No. 124 of 4 August 2017 124

In compliance with the provisions of Article 1, paragraphs 125 to 129, of Law No. 124 of 4 August 2017 (Annual Law on the Market and Competition), subsequently amended by Article 35 of Decree-Law No. 34 of 30 April 2019 (Growth Decree), concerning the disclosure and transparency obligations incumbent upon entities that have economic dealings with the Public Administration.
4 August 2017

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CRT – Market and Production Trends

The CRTs were established, with the support of the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies, to create a national monitoring and information network covering the main aspects of beekeeping.
17 March 2027

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ECOSEME Project (EAFRD)

The project is funded under Operation Type 16.1.01 – European Innovation Partnership Operational Groups: ‘agricultural productivity and sustainability’ – Focus Area P4B, Regional Council Resolution No. 754/2022. 754/2022.
16 July 2026

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