PARIS — On storied rooftops and public gardens in the urban jungle of Paris, the bee business is thriving.
Bees are disappearing from fields across France and elsewhere in the world, victims of a slow decline in number because of loss of habitat compounded by a recent and mysterious catastrophe variously blamed on disease, parasites and pesticides.
But in the heart of the French capital, Nicolas Geant is preparing to sell off his honey. It comes from hives on the edges of the soaring glass roof of the Grand Palais exhibition hall, just off the Champs-Elysees.
“Paris has many balconies, parks and avenues full of trees and little flowers that attract many bees for pollination,” said Geant, who has 25 years of beekeeping experience.
The Grand Palais beehives went up in May. Hives also sit in the Luxembourg Gardens, on the dome of the 19th Century Palais Garnier and the roof of the Opera Bastille.
The Luxembourg Gardens’ hives alone produce more than half a ton of honey per harvest.
