KOCHI: Even as returns from crops like rubber and spices slide, those dealing in honey are tasting sweet success. Bee-keeping is turning into a lucrative business, setting a trend in Kerala. Low maintenance and good returns make it a very good farming option for housewives, senior citizens and even the employed. According to Philip Mathew, a bee-keeper, around 20,000 boxes are being placed in Kerala every year. “The numbers keep increasing every year,” he said.
Philip, who supplies boxes and hives all over Kerala and also in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra, said, “An increasing number of people are coming into the honey production business. The mantra of the business is ‘fix it and forget it’, like in the case of solar panels. The only thing the bee-keeper has to do is clean the box occasionally and feed the bees during the lean periods like the monsoon.”
He said a single box can yield up to eight litres of honey, with around 1 lakh litres being produced in the state.“People at first show reluctance. But when they see me harvesting honey and then get a taste of unadulterated goodness, they get hooked. Some people who started out with two or five boxes, today own around 200,” he said.
According to him, there is nothing like ‘zero sale’ in honey business. “The demand for honey in the domestic and international markets is very high. The price varies according to the type of honey. In the case of the honey produced by the stingless bees, a kg commands a price of Rs 3,000. The reason is the high medicinal value of honey. It is a very important ingredient in the preparation of various ayurvedic and homoeopathic medicines. The lowest price that honey commands is Rs 250 per litre,” he said.
The taste and market of the honey depend upon its flavour and colour.“In the case of pomegranate plantations, the honey will have a faint taste of pomegranate. The honey costs Rs 1,200 per litre,” he said.
Demand for honey soars
According to Philip, the only thing that affects honey production is climate change. “The production goes down when it rains as has happened this year. However, it is not so bad as the demand is very high and we get a good price,” he said.Having been in this industry for the past 30 years, he said investment is low.
“You don’t have to buy new hives since one hive can be divided into four. Once a person buys a box of hive, by the next year, he will be the owner of four. So it goes,” he said.Samkutty, a Marthoma evangelist who lives in North Paravur in Ernakulam district, started off with five boxes two years ago.
Today, he has ten. “I actually decided to set up the hives to boost the production of coconuts and other crops. Since bees help in pollination, I thought why not set up a few boxes,” he said.But after extracting around eight litres of honey per box, he realised the merit of setting up more. “The honey produced sold like hot cakes and it still does. I have set up around 50 at my farm near Adimali,” he said.
Wilson Jacob based at Chalakudy has over 200 boxes. “I have a dedicated set of customers“Every year, they buy honey from me. Among these, there are tourists and pharmacies,” he said.The number of participants at the bee-keeping seminar held at the Renewable Energy Centre at Mithradam at Aluva in Ernakulam is a sure sign of rising patronage.