Mart Kullamaa is a passionate Estonian beekeeper who has been beekeeping for over two decades. Growing up as a lonely kid who spent much of his time in the wilderness, Mart fell in love with bees and their world after a life-changing encounter with a relative who gave him some bee colonies. 

I got my first colony of bees when I was 12. I wasn’t afraid of being stung by the bees, which was how I learned to live with them. For the first time in my life, I opened a hive and saw a swarm of life buzzing loudly with a variety of powerful scents. I immediately fell in love with the bees and knew they were just so special.“

Today, Mart has about 800 colonies of bees in his beehives in Väike-Maarja, an area in the Nordic wilderness full of fertile vegetation and boundless harvesting potential. Being a beekeeper for Mart was borne out of passion and as a way to contribute to the sustainability of this fragile natural ecosystem. 

I take care of bees responsibly to contribute to their sustainable activities and to ensure the diversity of the ecosystem.”

Mart has been in the honey harvesting and production industry for many years and understands the problem of adulteration facing the industry. Many sugar syrups are sold under the guise of “real” honey, making huge revenues as sugar is cheaper than pure honey. Mart is dedicated to eradicating adulterated (fake) honey from the market. 

As the head of the Association of Estonian Professional Beekeepers, Mart has led the fight against adulterated honey in the market. He has succeeded in influencing Estonian authorities to employ the latest innovative method for detecting fake honey – the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) method used in German laboratories. For years, the Estonian authorities have used this method to monitor the Estonian honey market and remove several adulterated types of honey from retail shops. 

Just like HONEST NEKTAR, traceability is close to Mart’s heart. By enabling customers like you to trace the source of your honey, Mart and HONEST NEKTAR work together to promote transparency and traceability.