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Night has just fallen in central Côte d’Ivoire and the time has come for two men, venturing in protective gear, veils and gloves, to steal honey from their bees.
The art of beekeeping quickly spread to Assounvoue, at the heart of the world’s leading cocoa producer.
Farmers began to branch out into honey making to supplement their income – and also realized that their primary crops did best when pollinated by bees. Word of the twin benefits spread quickly.
“In West Africa, you have to harvest honey at night,” explains French beekeeper Sébastien Gavini, co-director of a company called Le Bon Miel de Côte d’Ivoire (Le miel fin de Côte d’Ivoire ).
Ivory Coast. By (AFP) “These bees are wild and aggressive – they won’t let you go. By working at night, you don’t get chased by bees, which means we don’t put people at risk.”
West African bees are “wilder and barely used to contact with humans,” Gavini explains.
It contrasts these characteristics with the gentler-nature European bees that have been guarded for centuries – and unfortunately are now threatened in many areas by insecticides.
Double victory
Modern beekeeping is only just beginning in Africa, says François Silue, member of the Ivorian Cooperative Society (SCI) in Katiola in the north, the source of the country’s most famous honey.
Liquid gold: a beekeeping cooperative in the town of Katiola prepares honey for sale. By Issouf SANOGO (AFP) “Our duty is to prevent farmers from killing bees, from changing their culture,” says Silue, who was trained by specialist Japanese and German aid workers.
The SCI brings together around fifty beekeeping farmers.
Obtaining statistics on beekeeping activity is complicated at the national level.
“There are only partial figures,” explains Marcel Iritie, president of the Côte d’Ivoire Agricultural Platform.
The platform estimates that 30 tonnes of honey are produced each year by around 100 members and several cooperatives.
“But that doesn’t take into account the hundreds of small producers,” notes Iritie.
All or almost all of these people have retained their traditional roles as farmers, treating honey production as a secondary activity.
“The farmer who starts beekeeping wins twice,” argues Mathieu Offi, who works alongside Gavini.
“Money is earned with honey, and crops are better from better pollination.”
– Minimum investment –
While he teaches training as one of the most experienced beekeepers in the country, Offi also continues his work as a farmer near Kossou in the middle of the country.
Pod cast: Côte d’Ivoire is the largest producer of cocoa, the raw material for cocoa. But many farmers are poor – beekeeping helps them supplement their income. By Issouf SANOGO (AFP) “Thanks to bees, (cocoa) production can be multiplied by 1.6”, he adds.
“The bees do all the work!”
Offi and Gavini have set up their beehives in a strictly organic market garden in Assounvoue in a successful marriage of cultures.
“Bees are like humans, they thrive when the environment is right,” says Offi. “With pesticides, they suffer.”
“I need five more beehives,” says Ahmed Yao, a farmer who benefits from both the sale of market produce and the income from the honey.
Gavini and Offi have signed partnerships with agro-industrial companies producing bananas and other fruits.
“It’s a win-win situation,” Gavini says, highlighting the benefits of pollination and offering training to small farmers.
Gavini says that a relatively small investment is needed for beekeeping.
“In total, a beehive costs 35,000 FCFA (53 euros / $ 64). Add clothes and basic equipment, and it’s 65,000 FCFA (99 euros) at most. You get the money back the first year.
‘Incredible varieties’
The price of a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of honey ranges from 3,000 to 10,000 francs (15 euros), while the derivatives (beeswax, propolis varnish, essential oils and even bee venom) also sell well.
Experts say the outlook for beekeeping in Côte d’Ivoire is bright – the country has a vast array of tropical flowers and trees to provide nectar. By Issouf SANOGO (AFP) “The taste of honey depends on what the bee gathers. Honey from here is famous because there are acacias and cashews. It’s sweet, ”explains Edvige Brou Adoua, saleswoman at the Katiola cooperative.
But, she insists, you should always buy direct from the point of sale, and not from a product peddled by the side of the road. In the economic capital Abidjan, it is not uncommon for street vendors to sell honey mixed with water and sugar.
“Quality is the most important thing”, recognizes Sébastien Gavini.
“We are fortunate to have incredible varieties of honey,” he says, shaking some of Ivory Coast’s botanical treasures, from flowers of coffee, kapok and orange trees to acacias and cashews.
“Each honey has a specific taste. Côte d’Ivoire could become the world’s leading producer of honey. We have it all!”
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