Honey prices nosedive as supply exceeds demand

Font Size

Print

Feedback

Email

Discuss

Save & Share Article

What’s this?

Digg	My Yahoo	Fark
del.icio.us	Newsvine	Reddit

Rate This Article

Rating:  0

Domestic honey prices in India have dropped precipitously last year in the major honey producing states as the supply has far exceeded the demand in absence of a proper pricing formula and unorganised retailing.

In Haryana, average prices to beekeepers and farmers during the past year have been in the range of Rs 18 per kilogram, compared to Rs 60 per kilogram during the previous two years.

In Punjab, prices have averaged Rs 35, compared to Rs 85 and Rs 78 in previous years. In Bihar, the price for eucalyptus honey during the past year was Rs 40, compared to Rs 60 and Rs 55 in the previous two years. While the price of Litchi honey, a specialty high value honey unique to Bihar typically sold unblended with other types of honey, has averaged at Rs 55 during the past year compared to Rs 75 and Rs 60 in the last two years.

“Pricing of honey is a function of the intermediaries and they decide to buy at a particular price which often is detrimental to the honey as an industry,” said Suresh Iyer, director, Corporatease. In a report on honey industry he has suggested greater reliance on the use cooperatives for marketing honey to eliminate market fragmentation and improve prices.

Advocating the need for a minimum support price from the government and promotion of honey consumption in the consumer market, he stated that greater sales through KVIC could be achieved as it has its own selling outlets and is prepared to pay higher prices.

Industry experts project the industry’s potential to be 10 times current levels through diversification of bee products such as honey, beeswax, royal jelly, pollen, propolis and venom for both home consumption as food stuff and medicine. There also is ample room for growth in consumption of honey in India.