Post by Trade Coach on Jun 10, 2021 14:44:40 GMT 1
Honey Importation: How Nigeria Loses $10 billion Annually – NEPC
Nigeria loses an average of $10 billion annually through importing honey and its by-products that Nigeria is capable of producing locally.
The Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Chief Olusegun Awolowo, said that the country loses about $10 billion annually on honey importation into the country.
He made the statement at the technical session on Enhancing Global Markets Access for Nigerian Honey and honey by-products in Abuja, the Federal Capital of Nigeria.
He also added that one of the problems affecting export opportunities in honey in Nigeria is the use of old techniques by the local beekeepers.
The European Union (EU) accounts for about 35% of the total global honey imports, therefore the objective of the council will be to obtain listing certification for beekeepers to ease their access to the European market.
The Federal Ministry of Agriculture has revealed that Nigeria spends more than $2 billion annually to import honey into the country.
There is high demand for the product both locally and internationally, people all over the world are steadily moving away from sugar consumption to honey.
The business is a lucrative one; the honey farmer can even combine the business with other businesses as he does not need to stay there all day long.
Nigeria’s honey sector has a large market size, but very few producers. What has been the problem hampering the production of honey and its by-products in Nigeria?
By-products of honey:
The following are by-products of honey; in the business of honey you make money not only from the main product alone, rather you will be making money from some other by-products too.
It then means that you can carve out a niche for yourself and start playing in that niche, and probably dominate it to your great financial advantage.
Pollen: This is a source of protein and vitamins.
Royal Jelly: It is a dietary supplement for the elderly.
Propolis: This is a natural antibiotic.
Bee Wax: Used for softer and younger looking skin.
Bee Venom: This is an indispensable ingredient used to desensitize against bee stings.
Honey had occupied a unique position as the only concentrated form of sugar for ages.
Why you should start the business of honey
The business of honey is very lucrative, it is an evergreen business; this is a business that has been in existence over the years and the product is used by all categories of people.
Remember that we said here in this forum that one of the factors that make a product or business worthwhile going into is if the business or product is evergreen. That is, a product or business that can be done all round the year and seasons.
Honey business immensely qualifies to be classified as such because provided there are food, cosmetic industries, the young and the elderly; there will be consistent demand for the product.
There are very few persons into the business, the reason being that because bees do sting, people tend to view the business as strange; they do often imagine how someone can manage such a business.
They are ignorant of the level of profit in that business, and have refused to seek knowledge to tap from the goldmine called honey.
I am aware of people who started this business with less than N25,000 about two years ago with just one hive for testing; today they have more than 15 hives. They are still doing their normal day business.
How can you start the honey business?
I will not advise you to jump into the business without first getting some training or partnering with someone with the requisite knowledge, but you can start by buying and selling honey locally. From there you can develop the knowledge and start the export business.
Our main aim here is for our members to enter into the lucrative business of exporting honey to bridge the gap between the local production and the quantity and value of importation into the country.
Did you know that pure honey does not get bad? No matter how long it stays, it cannot go bad because there are no additives included in them.
We shall continue this article by exposing those hidden things that will lead our members into doing business of exporting honey to other countries.
Let me assure you, if you have access to pure undiluted honey, you are 100% sure of making good money in this business. You can test the market by just getting a source of pure honey; sell to one or two people in your neighborhood with warranty. Sit down and see money pouring into your bank account daily.
Business of pure honey is gold. Do something to reduce the import bill of the Federal Government and you will be smiling to the banks too.
Stay with us.
