President of the National Bee Keepers Association of Ghana, Mr. Patrick Addo Newman has disclosed that the African Union has discovered a virus known as Vorroa which destroys bees and prevents the insects from growing and producing honey.
According to him, this has resulted in low production of honey in the country.
The African Union had earlier organized a summit in the Kenyan capital city of Nairobi to discuss the challenges of bee-keeping in Africa. The summit attracted participants such as Bee farmers in Africa, Standards Boards, Food and Drugs Authorities, etc. who were all tasked to inspect the market of honey products.
The program was targeted towards how farmers can rear bees, the benefits, processing and subsequent distribution of honey, etc.
Mr. Newman tasked farmers to understand the importance of pollination since bees play a major role in the process. “They must not kill them but rather protect the bees for honey,” he said.
He added that bee health was also important because when bees are infected with virus, it spreads and kills them which prevent the draining of honey. He disclosed that there is a clinic in Tamale which is operated by experts from Spain who inspect the bees to determine whether they are healthy and can produce honey.
Bees are a proud source of many products such as honey, wax, pollen, bee venom, royal jelly, etc. which are all derived from their rearing.
These can be done by adding value to the honey through processing and packaging for consumers under hygienic conditions for export to other countries. This must however meet international standards for exportation.
Bee keeping is a lucrative business and African farmers are encouraged to venture into it for exportation to other countries to earn valuable income.
Source: Nana Ama Sarfo/ritefmonline.org/amasarfo297@gmail.com
