Pakistani apiculture sector to thrive with Chinese know-how

A man shows a beehive frame at a research farm in the Chakwal district of Punjab province, Pakistan, April 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal)

ISLAMABAD, May 19 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan has a huge potential in honey production but due to multiple factors local beekeepers are facing challenges that can be overcome by following the Chinese style of bee-keeping, experts said.

Speaking at the China-Pakistan Apiculture Forum on Thursday, Pakistani and Chinese experts said the Pak-China apiculture cooperation is a way forward toward a successful honey production sector of Pakistan.

Nadia Rehman, a member of food security and climate change of Pakistan's Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, told the webinar that such cooperation will lead to knowledge sharing, research collaboration and technology transfer, and result in enhanced honey yield in the South Asian country.

She added that 390,000 people in Pakistan are involved in beekeeping and produce over 4,000 tons of honey annually, and if they adopt modern technologies, honey production can surge to 70,000 tons a year and create about 87,000 green jobs.

Speaking at the event, Muhammad Naeem, vice chancellor of Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University in Rawalpindi, said many people from rural areas of Pakistan are associated with beekeeping which becomes a profitable business and a great source of livelihood.

The annual yield per colony was 30 to 35 kg, but recently due to climate change effects it decreased to 10 to 12 kg, posing a serious challenge for beekeepers to continue the business, he said.

A man extracts royal jelly from a Chinese-styled hive at a research farm in the Chakwal district of Punjab province, Pakistan, April 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal)

Naeem added that to help Pakistani beekeepers overcome the challenge, his university is helping them not only to increase the yield but also find alternative ways to earn money, by introducing Chinese technology.

Now a training course on beekeeping and honey processing technology for Pakistan is being held in which 39 participants from different universities, research institutes, beekeeping associations, honey traders, and beekeepers are getting the most advanced knowledge of beekeeping from Chinese professors, Naeem said.

"As China is playing a leading role in the research and development of beekeeping in the world, the knowledge sharing by Chinese experts regarding modern beekeeping techniques can be very useful for Pakistani beekeepers and the scientific community," he added.

Pang Chunxue, charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan, told the webinar that agriculture is one of pillar industries of Pakistan and a key area for bilateral cooperation between China and Pakistan.

"Agricultural cooperation is crucial to the high-quality development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. China is committed to supporting Pakistan in revitalizing its agriculture, livestock, dairy, fisheries and food processing sectors to attain sustainable growth and meet the challenge of poverty alleviation," she added.

The honey produced in Pakistan enjoys a good reputation for its unique taste and high quality for a long time, but has been suffering from problems of low production, low price and small scale, she said.

Pang added that China has a history of beekeeping for more than 2,000 years and is one of the earliest countries in the world to raise bees. Nowadays the beekeeping industry in China has developed rapidly and exports of related products rank top in the world.

"As ironclad brothers, the Chinese government is happy to share the advanced technology of beekeeping and honey-processing with Pakistani people to promote the beekeeping industry and improve people's livelihood," she said.

President of the Apicultural Science Association of China Wu Jie said that the association is willing to work with beekeeping research institutes and universities in Pakistan to strengthen cooperation, and promote common development and prosperity of the beekeeping industry in China and Pakistan.