Bitter blow to Tangail honey producers
The honey was produced since November last year in mustard fields and orchards in different areas of the upazila.
The huge quantity of honey is unsold as big buyers including pharmacutical companies and food processing industries want processed honey, which they import.
Apiculturists can not supply processed honey as they do not have technological facility for this, said Dulal Miah, secretary of Bhuapur Upazila Apiculture Cooperative Association. A processing equipment costs around Tk 80 lakh, he said during a recent visit to the area.
The big buyers import most of the honey from India and Australia.
A huge amount of foreign exchange is spent for honey import every year. Nurul Islam, Director of Bangladesh Institute of Apiculture (BIP) in Dhaka, when contacted could not specify the quantity of honey imported annually. "It (the imported quantity) is several hundred tonnes", he said.
"There are at least 25,000 apiculturists including over 200 commercial producers in the country. They produce at least 1,100 tonnes of good quality honey a year in the country", he said.
Honey, possibly the best food item gifted by nature for humans, is used for producing medicines and food items.
This correspondent found 109 maunds (about four tonnes) of honey stored at Dulal's house.
He said AP, a food processing company, bought 75 maunds of honey from him last year but they are yet to strike a deal this year.
"I contacted another big pharmacutical company (Square Pharmacuticals), but they want processed honey".
They import processed honey from India and Australia, Dulal said.
Abul Hossen, director of Apiculture Development Organisation, said, although a huge quantity of locally produced honey remains unsold, Bangladeshi companies import it.
About 200 apiculturists produce around 250 tonnes of honey in Bhuapur, Gopalpur, Ghatail, and Madhupur upazilas in Tangail district a year.
Apiculturist Ariful Haque of Bhutia village in Gopalpur upazila said he produced 20 tonnes of honey during the last mustard season but most of it is still unsold due to lack of buyers.
This correspondent also found stocks of honey with many other commercial apiculturists. Abdul Hye of Rasulpur village has 20 tonnes. Another five tonnes are stored at the house of Abdus Salam at Ambaria village in Madhupur upazila and Naosher Ali of the same village has six tonnes. Ashraf Ali and Faruque Miah of Agterilla village have four and three tonnes respectively.
Two and a half tonnes are stored with Babul Miah of Balarampur village and four tonnes with Jewel Miah of Betua village in Bhuapur upazila.
As a large quantity of the honey remained unsold, its production declined by around 50 per cent this year in litchi orchards in Raniganj area in Kapasia upazila in Gazipur district, they claimed.
Drought and spraying of insecticide in orchards also accounted for the fall in production as use of insecticides killed millions of honeybees.
On the other hand, apiculturists are facing problem in preserving their honey produced during mustard cultivation season, they said.
Coming from different parts of the country, at least 21 apiculturists started honey production in litchi orchards in Raniganj union in Kapasia upazila in Gazipur district in first week of March this year.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. They said they produce honey during five seasons in a year: From mustard flowers from first week of December till last week of January, Guji Til (an oil seed) fields from last week of January to first week of March, litchi gardens during March, in Sundarbans during March-April and from Sada Til (oil seed) fields from second week of April to second week of June. The rest of the year is off-season for honey cultivators.
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