Skilled manpower crucial for beekeeping, honey harvest: speakers

2802

RAJSHAHI, April 26, 2017 (BSS)-Speakers at a training session mentioned that generating a competent workforce can be effective means of boosting beekeeping and honey harvesting to meet gradually mounting demands for honey both at home and abroad.

They viewed there is enormous prospects of enriching the country’s export list through boosting honey farming and its field level production. If quality control and modern packaging are done, demand for Bangladeshi honey will increase in international arena as a whole.

They were addressing the inaugural session of a week-long training on skill development on honey farming in the city on Tuesday afternoon. Industrial Support Centre (ISC) of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) organized the training in its conference hall.

Development of Beekeeping through Modern Technology Project supported the course.

ISC Deputy General Manager Mahabubur Rahman addressed the opening session as chief guest with BSCIC Deputy General Manager Abdul Quddus in the chair.

Director of Sonamoni School Alamgir Kabir, ISC Survey and Information Officer Akmal Hossain and Extension Officer Anwarul Karim also spoke. Mahabubur Rahman told the meeting that there are around 25,000 skilled and unskilled beekeepers and 2,000 bee-farms in Bangladesh.

If there remain 50 bee-boxes on an average in each farm, the number of
boxes will stand at 1.0 million. Bangladesh has immense potentials to export
honey.

Demand for honey in the international arena including the Middle East, is increasing widely. Bee-produced goods like honey, jelly, pollen, wax and bee-venom are being used in medicine, food, drinks and cosmetics industries.

For this reason, BSCIC has been implementing the project and conducting skills development training courses for honey hunters and beekeeping skills development courses for interested entrepreneurs and motivational courses for common people including students of schools and colleges throughout the country.

Mahabubur Rahman said Bangladesh can even export queen bees, candle and gum which will further contribute to the export. In Europe, each queen bee is sold at 50 euro.

He said many unemployed people can be involved in honeybee farming and the marketing process of honey, which will ultimately help reduce poverty apart from giving a boost to the country’s export earnings.