BEERKEE PING
AND
DENED OPMENT
PROJECT EXPERIENCES by Ange lo Isola vag
the plan must be modified to suit the field conditions. When we started traditional hives were already in position to be populated by natural swarms We were too late to introduce top-bar hives and besides, no local beekeeper was interested in adopting a new and expensive model But most people were interested in the Project if it meant they could get a better price for their honey We therefore decided to first improve the quality of honey produced by traditional beekeepers to help them get a better price and to gain their confidence
Centres Asingle honey collecting centre could clearly not
receive honey from the whole sector because of |} serious transport problems 2) the management of such a big structure would be impossible (lack of trained people. etc) and 3) the premises were not
available We helped
POPP ECE
PE
OUT
bbe
Potuiee datevested
Angelo Isola worked in Guinea-Bissau from January 1990 to January 1991 on a beekeeping development project
funded by
FAO.
In this article he adds
his experiences to the debate on the
frat
Utese Craditronadl
ites
Guinea-Bissau 1s one of the poorest African countries Beekeeping and honey hunting are practised all over the country, but particularly in the Eastern Province, where there is very good natural potential Yearly honey production is estimated to be 800-1000 tonnes Reliable statistics are not available, but the Ministry of Commerce supplied data showing that during the 1960s and 1970s many tonnes of beeswax were exported Beeswax exports have now declined considerably this may be because of difficulties caused by strict control on commercial transactions
benefits and problems of beekeeping
development projects.
Objectives The objectives of the Project {in Pitche, Eastern Province} were to set up a honey collecting centre, establish a demonstration apiary, introduce top-bar hives, conduct experiments with frame hives. install a workshop for hive construction, train the technicians of the Beekeeping Department, and train the farmers And all within [2 months! Every beekeeper knows that honey production is the result of two different factors the bees. who produce the honey, and the beekeeper who collects it Generally the bees do a very good job, more often the beekeeper spoils the quality of the product due to poor techniques This happens the world over and in Guinea-Bissau as well!
Nillager
wrth
aditiutal
Keeping in mind this “division of labour’, the Project decided to improve extraction techniques This seemed a short-term, easy-to-reach objective By contrast the improvement of colony management in Guinea-Bissau. as in the whole of Africa, is a long-term and difficult-to-reach objective
fate
Beeswax exports from Guinea-Bissau
|
Marketing
Tonnes
Tonnes 1961
8l
1972
79
1962
27
1973
5
1963
62
1974
35
No action of beekeeping development may succeed unless accompanied by positive marketing actions The basis for any marketing action is a good quality product The first step is to supply good quality honey which retains its properties and value
1964
57
1975
32
without fermenting
1965
83
1976
57
1966
64
1977
15
1967
57
1978
12
1968
26
1979
0
1969
62
1980
10
1970
21
1984
5
1971
48
1985
FOUR
Improvement in product quality is particularly necessary in Guinea-Bissau where honey is extracted traditionally by pouring hot water on the combs, you cannot bottle and market honey if your product is a dirty, sugar-water solution which quickly ferments
Activities Activities started with the arrival of the imported beekeeping equipment A rapid survey of the Project area and visits to 40 villages showed us that
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Our Project set up 14 village centres in order to decentralise activities and encourage Involvement Each centre was equipped with a tropical honey extractor, a honey press, honey filters, storage tanks and small buckets The five biggest centres also had solar wax extractors
The activities of each centre were monitored by a Project extension worker who trained one or two villagers to use the equipment, check and buy incoming honey. Most honey was extracted by a press because the combs were too small to be put in the extractor Letting honeycombs drip on a wire mesh gave good results the system is slow but dripping honey is pure and clean Storage tanks to leave honey to ripen were essential Honey should be left to settle for a few days to remove the particles which are inevitably present even after a first straining The only problems we had related to the organisation and timing of activities sometimes we had no incoming honey, the next day we were brought 400 kg So it was tricky to make the work flow easily, especially because pressing honey or letting it drip are slow techniques, which cannot cope with several hurried beekeepers A wellorganised centre could extract up to 350 kg of honey a day Improved extracting techniques resulted in improved product quality which in turn led to increased prices for honey and beeswax The Project organised the marketing of all the collecting centres’ honey and beeswax by signing an agreement with the most important local honey buyer
At the end of the honey campaign. in June 1990, the 14 centres had collected a total of 25 tonnes of honey and 5 tonnes of beeswax The beekeepers received 1500PG (SO 6) per kilo for extracted haney and 4000PG ($1 6) per kilo for beeswax {Compare with 1989 prices honey 550PG ($0 2) per kilo, and traditionally extracted beeswax 1500PG (SO 6} per kilo ) |
25 tonnes of pure quality honey, (with no water added!), is a good result, especially considering that the Project started just a few weeks before the honey season, when many beekeepers were already engaged with other honey merchants and could not bring their production to our centre
Importance of village centres Very often development projects invest much of their funds in constructing premises, workshops, or buying sophisticated equipment which Is not useful Most of these expenses are for the “prestige” of the project or for (tolerated) unofficial use
