Myanmar shipped 1,726.42 tonnes of honey with an estimated value of over US$2.589 million to foreign trade partners in the past ten months (April-January) of the current financial year 2023-2024, according to the Apiculture Division under the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department.
Myanmar exports honey to the Republic of Korea, Japan, the US and Singapore. Myanmar’s beekeeping businesses are primarily found in Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Magway Region and Shan State.
Myanmar produces sesame honey, jujube honey, Niger honey, sunflower honey, lychee honey and flower honey.
Myanmar’s honey production is estimated at over 4,000 metric tonnes annually. Sixty per cent went to foreign markets, while the remaining is designated for domestic consumption.
Honey is utilized as a traditional medicine in the country. Myanmar’s honey fetched $2,500-$3,000 per tonne in external market.
There are some state-owned beekeeping stations with 6,200 beehives in 31 townships and over 950 private beekeeping businesses operating with nearly 200,000 beehives.
Moreover, two million acres of crops yearly contribute to bee pollination every year. The beekeeping businesses near the crop fields contribute to the successful yield of the crop as well as quality bee production.
Over 1,900 tonnes of honey were shipped to external markets in the 2022-2023 FY (April-March), with an estimated value of over $2.8 million.
Myanmar exported 1,853.74 tonnes to foreign markets by sea and 63.44 tonnes to neighbouring countries via cross-border. — NN/EM
