Does the purest honey in Paris come from its rooftops?

Officials are estimating that there are more than 1,000 hives on its roofs, up from 700 in 2016. Beekeepers saw the bee population dramatically declining due to pesticide use in agriculture .

Beekeeper Audric de Campeau checks up on his bee hives installed on the rooftop of the Monnaie de Paris in Paris, France, September 26, 2018. Picture taken September 26, 2018. (Reuters)

High on the rooftops of Paris, bees tend to their hives as if the city's streets were rolling fields. The difference is that here their colonies are better protected from the pesticides, predators and parasites that are menacing populations in rural France.

Urban beekeeping has flourished in the French capital over the past year with city officials estimating that there are more than 1,000 hives on its roofs, up from 700 in 2016.

Beekeepers in France have pressed the government to protect their livelihood and take action on the use of neonicotinoids, a group of pesticides based on the chemical structure of nicotine, which they say are ravaging their bee colonies.

TRT World's Assed Baig reports.