Honey production still dormant

Domestic honey production in Papua New Guinea has remained dormant while low price imported honey has dominated the market. Reporter MICHAEL PHILIP writes about the history of honey production as an industry, it’s current status and the way forward featuring the efforts of New Guinea Fruits, a leading producer of PNG honey based in Goroka, Eastern Highlands, where over 90 per cent of the country’s honey is produced.

BEEKEEPING was introduced to Papua New Guinea from Australia in the 1940s.
Initially for research purposes, the apiculture (or beekeeping) industry went on to develop commercial production of honey.
In 1976, the industry received a boost under a New Zealand-PNG bilateral aid project.
However, mismanagement and financial problems resulted in a collapse of the industry in 1993.
Little happened until 2007, when apiculture was identified as a sub-sector of the livestock sector in the National Agriculture Development Plan (NADP) 2007 to 2016 and allocated K3.15 million over 10 years for the implementation of the apiculture development programme.
The Government through the Agriculture Department, can resurrect honey production in the country if only apiculture development programme is still a sub-sector of the livestock sector in the plan.
According to Australian researcher Cooper Schouten, Papua New Guinea has an amazing potential for honey production but it will take effort and support to achieve it.
Apiculture has been happening at a low level of several generations in PNG, but Schouten ,who is at Southern Cross University in New South Wales, said it could provide an additional income stream for many more farmers.
He said beekeeping could mean rapid returns on investment, improvements in crop yields, doesn’t require large areas of land and as complementary to other farming activities.
Schouten said a key factor for PNG was its biodiversity and it had amazing prospects.
“There’s so much flora and beekeeping is really dependent on the flora resources that are available and just the diversity and the abundance of flora resources for bees, particularly in the Eastern Highlands and up in the mountain region, it’s phenomenal,” he said.
Schouten pointed out that beekeeping was also an alternative income stream that doesn’t degrade the environment, is accessible to marginalised groups and gives many other benefits.
He said this would require the Government and other organisations to provide help but it should be done in a collaborative way.
“I think part of it is building really strong relationships in country and fostering those relationships, and working on problems that matter to local people,” Schouten said.
“We don’t go in there with the notion that we have got the answers – no one knows what’s going on when we turn up and we really try to solve problems together.
“That means that the project is much more sustainable because they are owned by the local people.” Owner of Helping Hand Honey, a honey producer in Eastern Highlands, Kelly Inae said honey production can hit the market if only the Agriculture and Livestock Department realises its potential and allocate funding to every province in the country so they have the chance to tap into bee farming.
Early last month, Goroka development authority funded a bee keeping training for 21 men and women which was facilitated by Inae.
Inae said Helping Hand Honey wanted to support and upskill locals who want to venture into honey farming and also upskill those who are already established to better their bee farming.
“About 70 per cent of the training was conducted with more training on the honey bee site while the rest were theory taught in class,” he said.
“We believe site seeing is important for beginners to learn and understand rather than teaching them only theory.
“I believe there are few established honey producers in some provinces, it is now the responsibility of the agriculture department to fund these established honey producers with funds so they can be able to run training programs to those interested individuals who want to venture into bee farming.
“We cannot continue to use our own budget and resources to run such trainings, we need partnership so we can bring back honey production in the country,” he said.
Following the signing of agreement between Government and the landowners of Porgera to reopen the Porgera mine, Enga Women in Agriculture has decided to tap into honey production as they believe it has a huge potential to generate fast income.
“This is a big boost for us to venture more into agriculture and tell the Government that ‘yes we can provide our own food’,” the association said.
“Honey production is unique and we aware of its costings so we want to venture into it so we prove to our provincial government and the Government that we can do honey production.
“Not only honey but chilli and vegetables like tomatoes, capsicum, onion etc.
“Most times we import vegies and fruits from outside the country to supply to our mines, this year Enga Women in Agriculture is taking the lead, showing a good example to other provinces that they can do it so we all can tap into agriculture.
“The market of honey is very high back in the 70s to 80s but we don’t know the reason why it drops and suddenly disappears.
“We can resurrect honey production if agriculture and livestock sees the potential in bee farming projects in the country.”
Discussing a way forward for the industry, an NRI research report on honey production said effective private public partnership arrangements are vital for bee farming products to be successfully marketed with adequate financial return for farmers.
The report said farmers can have land, hives and be producing honey but without markets, the industry will not thrive.
Ongoing consultation is necessary for buyers to understand beekeeper operations and vice-versa.
There must be interaction, support and encouragement established among all stakeholders.
The report said there is a need to established a high level of confidence in the industry by having reliable investors (local and overseas) that must work in consultation with Government agencies, organised farmer associations, independent agencies and donor agencies.
“Critical for success are effective private public partnership arrangements and the work of extension and advisory services,” the report said.
“Moreover, the apiculture (beekeeping) can thrive and become a sustainable cottage type industry contributing to the wellbeing of beekeepers and associated stakeholders and to the nation’s economy.”