RMRDC: Driving initiative to save Nigeria’s scare foreign exchange
Research has shown that N3 billion worth of honey is imported into Nigeria annually. In view of this, RMRDC and other stakeholders have taken it as a challenge to develop a national agricultural commodity development plan to promote its development and sustenance as an agro-business; BINTA SHAMA reports.
Honey is a sweet syrupy substance produced by bees from the nectar of flowers and used by humans in various ways. Studies have shown that, where this invention is implemented, beekeeping will provide a valuable source of income to a lot of people with relatively little investment around the world. Out of the major bee species that occur globally, the western honey bee, Apis mellifera, had been domesticated for honey production and crop pollination.
Apis mellifera is extensively used for commercial pollination of fruit and vegetable crops. The scale of its pollination services is commonly measured in billions of dollars. It has been credited as being responsible for pollination of about 9 per cent of crops across the world.
The rapid growth of beehive invention
According to available statistics, global beehive stock rose from around 50 million in 1961 to about 98 million in 2019. In United States of America, about 109,799,366.60kg of honey worth $24,200,000.00 is produced yearly. Australia produces 18,375,000.51kg of honey and exports 5,898,313.08kg worth 900,000 pounds annually while Tanzania also exports about 750,000 pounds worth of honey annually. While in Nigeria, more than 3 billion naira is spent to import honey annually in view of the fact that until recently, beekeeping as a commercial venture is largely underdeveloped in the country, despite various advantages of the enterprise.
Benefits of bee produce
The bee produce generally used in the industry are honey, pollen, propolis, royal jelly and venom. It comprises 17 – 20% water, 76 – 80% glucose, and fructose, pollen, wax, and mineral salts. Pollen grains are small male reproduction units that are formed in the anthers of higher flowering plants. Pollen contains lipids, sterols, enzymes, vitamins and minerals, sugar, starch and cellulose, while propolis, or bee glue, is a mixture of beeswax and resins collected from leaf bugs and twigs. It has antibacterial and antifungal properties. The royal jelly on the other hand is a protein rich substance that is made from digested pollen and honey and contains sugars, fats, amino acids, vitamins, minerals and proteins. Venom used in the bee sting is made up of a complex mixture of proteins. The wax is used in the production of drugs, cosmetics, furniture polish, art materials, candles, etc.
All over the world, the production and trade in honeybee offers the good opportunities for small scale beekeepers as an average bee colony produces 27.2 – 45.4kg of honey each year. With increasing interest in natural ingredients and a growing understanding of the medicinal value and uses of bee products, the demand for these products is expanding globally. There is new interest globally for the therapeutic value of honey and propolis. Adding value to bee products also leads to diversified incomes and more sustainable livelihoods for beekeepers while increasing the availability of natural, healthy and medicinal products for consumers.
Beekeeping also fosters the establishment of associated industries such as the manufacture of beekeeping equipment, including bee hives, smokers and protective clothing. Bees pollination services are also traded and are very valuable.
RMRDC takes initiative
Beekeeping can be an important foreign exchange earner in Nigeria, but regrettably until recently, it was largely unexplored and the country had to meet domestic demand mostly through importation. The value chain was mostly underdeveloped and most products adulterated. With increasing growth in domestic consumption of honey, the Raw Materials Research and Development Council and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture gave honey development a national agricultural commodity development priority in order to promote its sustainable development as an agro-business. This initiative is gradually increasing production of honey bee products through the overhauling of its value chain. Since initiation of the project, RMRDC has come up with various programmes, projects and activities, all aimed at promoting the development of beekeeping for honey and other Bee Hive products production for industrial use in the country. The major component of RMRDC initiatives include capacity building on different aspects of value chain development. These include boosting of honey bee and honey production, packaging and marketing in line with global best practices.
One of the major initiatives of the Council is the Farmer-Farmer capacity building programme in collaboration with Winrock International Institute for Agriculture Development, United States of America. The programme was able to create awareness on modern beekeeping techniques for higher productivity through workshops and practical trainings in areas of hives establishment and colonies management. The trainings took place at the National Agricultural Extension Research and Liaison Services (NAERLS), Samaru, Ahmadu Bello University, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike – Umuahia, Abia State, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile – Ife, Osun State. Plateau State Agricultural Development Programme (ADP), Jos, Bauchi State Agricultural Development Programme (ADP), Bauchi, and the Rivers State Agricultural Development Programme (ADP).
RMRDC also collaborated with Mrs. Ann Harman a volunteer from US to conduct a Farmer-Farmer Training Programme on Queen Bee Rearing Techniques in various parts of the country. As a follow up to this, RMRDC in collaboration with Winrock International, hosted a training workshop on sachet honey packaging for beekeepers, processors and other relevant stakeholders. The Council collaborated with Professor Conie Louise Falk from the New Mexico University, USA to conduct a detailed study on honey marketing. The study revealed that manufacturing companies in Nigeria use sugar in place of honey due to scarcity of the commodity.
It also revealed that honey is being smuggled into Nigeria from neighboring countries and that consumer’s preferred honey to be packaged in small quantities for home use. To consolidate the findings, a survey was also carried out to evaluate consumer preferences in Abuja and parts of the north central states in collaboration with the Winrock International. The survey revealed that consumers in Nigeria prefer yellow, clear honey packed in smaller quantities for affordability.
RMRDC develops plants for processing honey
As a follow up to the survey, the Council designed and developed plants for processing. Six of these were distributed among honey producing farms and institutions in Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones. This was to enable bee keepers send their harvest for processing in line with global best practices. As fallout, the Council collaborated with World Association of Industrial Technological Research Organizations (WAITRO) to hold a stakeholders’ capacity building program for improvement of quality of honey bee products in October 2018. A number of other sensitization workshops were also held in collaboration with various collaborators to promote quality improvement in line with global best practices. Among these is the one entitled “Modern Beekeeping: Challenges and Prospects from Honey and other Hive Products” in collaboration with Enugu State Ministry of Human Capital Development and Poverty Reduction (MHCDPR).
To promote increased productivity from beehives, the Council conducted Research and Developments (R&Ds) on Rearing of Native Queen Bee for Commercial Beekeeping in Nigeria. This was undertaken at the Centre for Bee Research and Development, Ibadan-Nigeria to enhance local capacity for production of queen bees. Likewise the Council Collaborated with CEBRAD to host the Nigeria Biennial Bee Conference (NIBEECON). This is an event organized by the Centre for Bee Research and Development (CEBRAD) on biennial basis. The objective was to bring together stakeholders in the sector to discuss the potentials and proffer solutions to challenges in beekeeping value chain in Nigeria. The Council was honoured at the second edition of the conference with an award for the Best Research & Support Organization for Beekeeping Development in Nigeria. Sequel to this, a National Beekeeping Training was organized in Keffi, Nassarawa State under the auspices of the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), in collaboration with the Council, FMARD and NEPC. The overall objectives of the training was to build capacity of national experts in charge of bee diseases diagnostic and control as well as those of representatives of Beekeepers Association and extension workers at national level.
The Council facilitated several meetings between Beekeepers which has eventually led to the launching of the Federation of Beekeepers Association of Nigeria (FEBKAN) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI). The Council also partnered with Standard Organization of Nigeria and various international collaborators to promote characterization and standardization of Nigerian honey. This was to ensure compliance with global quality and standards. RMRDC is a member of inter-ministerial committee on Honey Production and Standards. The primary mandate of the committee is to come up with a national roadmap and policy for honey development locally. Furthermore to improve the quality of bee hive products for export, the Council has continued its effort by collaborating with the International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Nairobi – Kenya and ApiTrade to facilitate the setting up of a satellite station of the African reference laboratory for honey testing in Nigeria.
Presently, the Council is also collaborating with FAO in its Action Against Desertification (AAD) of the Great Green Wall (GGW) Project in market study, capacity building and livelihood improvement of selected participating communities of Bauchi, Jigawa and Sokoto States. This is with a view to equipping them with necessary beekeeping skills while addressing desertification.
The Council’s initiatives in this sector have substantially overhauled the honey value chain in Nigeria. Local production of quality honey products have increased substantially. Also the number of beekeepers, processors and marketers has increase in the country. This has resulted in an increase in production of quality beehive products in line with global best practices. Nigeria honey is now well accepted in the international market. The Country has also acquired the capacity for identification and management of bee diseases. Nigeria now exports honey products to other West African countries while importation of honey products is gradually declining. In the next few years, honey production in Nigeria will not only be able to meet local demand, the country would be able to export honey in substantial quantities to other countries apart from those in West Africa for generation of foreign exchange. As a promising project for post COVID 19 economic growth in Nigeria, beekeeping and honey production in Nigeria will substantially result in poverty alleviation and job creation in addition to the country being able to export experts in various aspects of beekeeping to other countries.
Source: blueprint.ng
