Small farmers in Zimbabwe get a buzz from honey

The two-year program, a response to rising unemployment in rural Zimbabwe, aims to improve production and quality among local farmers and help them establish links with retailers.

 

“We are working with government officials in Nyanga and Mutasa districts in eastern Zimbabwe to train farmers in beekeeping skills, harvesting techniques and business management,” says Priscilla Dembetembe, the IRC’s economic recovery and development coordinator in Zimbabwe.

Under the initiative, farmers in a particular village will be encouraged to concentrate their efforts on a single product—like honey—in order to achieve higher yields and efficiencies. “Our communities are richly endowed with natural resources, and we identify the resource that is in abundance in a certain area, and then look how to tap into it,” says Dembetembe.

 

A total of 171 beekeepers were trained in January this year, including 48 women, an added plus in an industry that has been the province of men. “Beekeeping is traditionally a male-dominated profession in Zimbabwe because it is regarded as dangerous,” Dembetembe explains.

 

The beekeepers are trained on hive construction, honey harvesting and marketing. “They send their honey far and wide to hotels, restaurants and supermarkets,” says Dembetembe. “We are currently exploring the potential in pharmaceutical companies because of honey’s medicinal qualities.” 

An IRC marketing officer conducts research and helps local producers connect with customers, “in itself quite a large task, as potential retailers for some of our farmers’ products aren’t always obvious,” notes Dembetembe. “Once we have identified potential buyers, we assist in the negotiations on volumes, prices, packaging and the like. We then try to facilitate bulking of the final product in a few locations to make it simpler and more cost effective for the buyers to collect.” 

 

The quality of the honey, sold raw or processed in 500g bottles, has improved since the IRC established local honey processing centers, aided by new equipment. Farmers are now fetching higher prices.

 

“It is wonderful to see farmers realizing an income which is helping them meet some of their expenses, such as paying for school fees and uniforms for their children,” Dembetembe says.