Wild Honey In Nepal | "Landruk Village Welcomes With Honey-Hunting Adventure"

Wild Honey In Nepal

Source    : recentfusion.com
By           : Rup Narayan Dhakal
Posted     : Wild Honey In Nepal

I know a few about domestic honeybees and honey harvesting ideas since there was a beehive in my house but I was not so much familiar with cliff (wild) honeybees that could be seen in some of the high cliffs of Kaski district in Mid-Nepal. Fortunately, I got an opportunity of taking part in a Honey Hunting Festival (Nov 11-13, 2008) took place in Landruk (1,550m), a touristy village along with the Annapurna Region.

The festival began with Panchai Baja, the Nepalese traditional music, dances and a party in this mountainous village. The festival inaugurated amid the mass meeting. Most of the villagers living in the urban areas like- Pokhara and Kathmandu- for employment, study and easy livelihood were also present there.

It was a sunny day that saw our 1 hour drive plus 3-hour hike from resort town Pokhara to Landruk. It was then 2 PM there in the village and 3 honey hunters were preparing themselves to fight against a high cliff where more than two dozens of beehives were hanging with honey combs. With a he-goat in the front part, honey hunters- Nakkal Bahadur Gurung-59, Min Prasad Gurung-47, Kharka Bahadur Pun-40 including his crew members and villagers left for cliff site (Kote Sanghu), the half an hour downhill walk from the village, in the bank of Modi Khola River.

Honey-hunters of Landruk village. Recentfusion.com

I was following the hunting team and taking some pictures of that bizarre event. As we arrived near the cliff that highs around 100 meters, a sacred procession was occurred and the he-goat was sacrificed in the name of god believing that the unexpected accident would not be occurred while honey hunting in the cliff.

Right after the sacred procession, the hunting crew arrived in the brink of the cliff and started to unfold the long ladder they brought made of two-bamboo-fiber-ropes and wooden sticks (steps). After that, an end of the ladder was fastening in a tree’s base and another was thrown down the cliff. Now it was then a time of watching real bravery of real heroes. Nakkal Bahadur started to take the down steps of ladder hanging in the high cliff adjoining the beehives. As he came near the hive, he saw thousands of black bees (Apis laboriosa) and heard their buzzing. I was at another bank of the river, two hundred meters far from the base of the cliff.

I could see the webs upon the beehives created by bees to save themselves from their enemies. After few minutes, Nakkal Bahadur received a Smoky flame sent down in a rope by his colleagues helping him from the upside. As he neared the flame around the beehive to smoke the bee out, bees left their nest to save themselves.

Then Nakkal Bahadur cut a honey comb using a metal spade attached in the end of a wooden rod that he had. After sending that comb up with a help of a rope that earlier sent down carrying smoky flame, he started to collect the honey in a bamboo basket that he got from the same rope. Then he sent the basket up. Turn by turn, Nakkal Bahadur and his colleagues reiterated such tasks to harvest the honey. The job is equally risky too. According to villagers, Jangavir Kshetry died of fall from the ladder decade ago while on the hunting.

Dozens of bees stag honey hunters while hanging on the cliff. However those real heroes tolerated that and showed the extreme adventure as a festival to the onlookers. At the same time, I was chased away by eight bees while I was trying to take some picture closely. However I again back near to the scene and took few photographs of honey hunting. I also tested the wild honey and found delicious but didn’t feel any dizziness though it was told that excessive consumption of such honey might make feel dizzy.

Ladder of ropes being carried to hunting site.

The villagers harvest honey twice in a month here in Landruk. But this time, Annapurna Sanctuary Tourism Entrepreneurs’ Committee (ASTEC) and local people jointly marked this task as a festival a decade later again. There are dozens of bee cliffs in Kaski district but they were not advertised in the market. Apis laboriosa’s honey, which is especially sought after in spring, is in high demand on the international market. It is said that people are ready to pay up to $15 per kg (2.2 lb).

Experts have also designated Nepal as a honey-hunting destination for tourists. An ICIMOD report says that tourists who come to Nepal in a group are paying $250-$1500 to experience one honey-hunting event. It is said that locals should be made responsible for preserving the honeybees and their nests and for their management as well. The use of modern technology to hunt honey and inexperienced hunters are the major threats to the cliff bees and the preservation of their nests.

At last, I would like to thank ASTEC President Kisham Gurung, Secretary Sam Bahadur Gurung, ACAP Ghandruk representative Shyam Bahadur Gurung, tourism entrepreneur Taikaji Gurung, Pundit Ananda Poudel, Local club member Bij Man Gurung and local Ghanashyam Chapagain, who supported me to collect the information for this travelogue.

Raw Honey | "Nepali Honey To Get Quality Certification Soon"

Source    : Press Release
By           : thehimalayantimes.com
Posted     : Raw Honey

KATHMANDU: Though honey exports offer potentially large opportunities, as demand and price for honey is growing internationally, certification has become a key barrier for export.

As Nepal produces large quantities of high quality uncontaminated honey which could fetch high prices, its certification to meet international standards will boost exports, said programme officer of UNDP Nabina Shrestha.

Despite being listed in the NTIS products list, in recent times, honey export has seen a plunge as according to Trade and Export Promotion Centre’s data, the country had exported honey worth only Rs 5,000 in the eight months of the current fiscal year, against exports of Rs 215,000 in the same period of last fiscal year.

Organic Certification Nepal — in coordination with Micro Enterprise Development Programme (MEDEP) — is helping with the production, collection, and processing of honey, whereas the Department

of Food Technology and Quality Control has also sent a Residue Monitoring Plan to

the European Commission

for its approval.

“Organic Certification Nepal — a registered national company linked to international certification agencies through an alliance called the Certification Alliance — is subcontracted to provide organic certification,” it said, adding that honey produced under the strict supervision of certified inspectors is further certified as organic honey.

Organic honey produced especially in the far western region, has a large potential in international niche markets and can be sold at relatively high prices, but quality certification is a must for importers, especially the European Union (EU), which has stringent regulations relating to the production and trade of honey. Currently, only 40 non-EU countries are eligible to export honey to the EU.

The main global standards that apply to the export of honey are the Codex Alimentarius, which defines what honey is, sets maximum levels for moisture content, sugar, and water soluble solids, lists contaminants, and defines hygiene and other standards.

Both the Codex Alimentarius and the EU have set strict limits on the residues of veterinary drugs, pesticides, and heavy metals in honey and demand that exporting countries have systems in place to monitor residues.

The EU requires monitoring for the presence of residues throughout production, collection, and processing.

As much of the honey produced in Nepal is organic or almost organic by default because of the low use of inputs, certification will help promote its export, Shrestha added.

Suppliers who want to export organic honey to the international market need to have their products certified as meeting organic production standards. The main purpose of organic certification is to assure quality and prevent fraud. Most organic certification is carried out by third party certifying agencies.

According to a MEDEP report, Nepal produces 10,000 tonnes of honey annually. An estimated 125,000 beehives have been installed by farmers.

Nepali Honey can beat other competitors in the international market due to its unique flavour because of the climatic conditions and flora. “It has also improved the socioeconomic conditions of poor farmers,” said Shrestha, adding that their increasing income has helped improve their living standard too.

According to a micro entrepreneur of Aalital in Dadeldhura, Yagya Bahadur Bohara, his economic condition has changed due to beekeeping that he started some 12 years ago. “I earn Rs 200,000 to

Rs 250,000 annually, which

has brought significant changes in my lifestyle,” he said, adding that the increased income — apart from agriculture — has helped him take care of the education and health needs of his children. “I have also provided employment to three people.”

CAC’s definition of honey

Honey is defined and described by the inter-governmental body for global food standards — the Codex Alimentarius Commission — as the natural sweet substance produced by honeybees from the nectar of plants or from secretions of living parts of plants or excretions of plant sucking insects on the living parts of plants, which the bees collect, transform by combining with specific substances of their own, deposit, dehydrate, store, and leave in the honey comb to ripen and mature. It consists essentially of different sugars, predominantly fructose and glucose. — CAC 2001

Honey Supplier In Nepal | "As Honey Bee Numbers Drop, US Sees Threat To Food Supply"

Source       :   http://in.reuters.com
By             :   Ian Simpson
Category   :   Bee Honey Supplier In Nepal
Posted By :   Bee Honey Supplier

Bee Honey Supplier

Genetics and poor nutrition are also hurting the species, which help farmers produce crops worth some $20 billion to $30 billion a year.

Honey bee colonies have been dying and the number of colonies has more than halved since 1947, said the report by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Agriculture Department.

The decline raises doubt about whether honey bees can fulfill their crucial role in pollinating crops that play a role in about one-third of all food and beverages sold in the United States, the report said.

"Overall losses continue to be high and pose a serious threat to meeting the pollination service demands for several commercial crops," the report said.

Pollination demands have increased so much in recent years that California's almond crop alone requires 60 percent of all managed colonies devoted to pollination -- rather than honey or beeswax production.

The United States is not alone in facing this concern: The European Union moved on Monday to protect its own falling bee population by banning three of the world's most widely used pesticides for two years.

The Varroa mite, a parasite first found in the United States in 1987, is the single biggest cause of colony loss in the United States and other countries, the report said.

Another main concern is the effect of pesticides on bee colonies. More research is needed to find out how much pesticide exposure bees get and their effects, the U.S. report said.

U.S. honey bees also lack genetic diversity, the result of many colonies being descended from fewer than 600 queens. That lack of diversity limits bees' ability to develop resistance to new diseases and to develop productive worker bees.

The report also found modern weed control methods, which result in large fields with a single crop, has hurt bees by limiting the range of nutrients in their diet, compared with past decades when bees had access to a wider array of plant foods in a smaller range.

The report is the result of a conference the EPA and Agriculture Department held in October 2012. Its findings will be the basis for a revision of a federal plan to combat the decline in honey bees.

Raw Beewax Sell In Nepal | "Benefits of Beeswax"

Raw Beewax's Sell In Nepal

What's the deal with beeswax anyway?

We're glad you asked! Even though beeswax is not the cheapest candle you can buy, it is an investment in your health. Beeswax is a clean-burning wax that is sourced from nature.

Wanna bee was born when the founders' son started having difficulties in school. A mission to rid toxins from the home environment was begun. You'd be amazed at all the junk that is a regular part of our lives. The obvious items were where we started - the chemicals and cleaners (baking soda and vinegar work wonders), the pesticides (use vinegar), the laundry soaps and shampoos and personal care items. It was an exhausting journey with lots of disappointments and surprises along the way. One of the most troublesome discoveries centered around fragrances and candles in particular. Now, our job is not to slam our competition. . . but just think for a minute. Where does paraffin come from? It's certainly not a natural substance. And you're burning that in your home! Mix in a few fragrances and additives and it really becomes an unpleasant reality. But we really encourage you to do your own research and decide. Learn all you can, and we're confident that you will agree with our viewpoint.

Beeswax, in wanna bee's opinion is simply better. There are a fantastic amount of claims out there. But we want our customers to be educated and to be really happy with their purchase and the reasons behind those purchases. We don't want to fill you full of unsubstantiated mumbo-jumbo (yes, that's a technical term). What we can honestly say to you from our own experiences is that beeswax burns better. It gives off a beautiful, soft glow and will not smoke unless in a drafty environment. Our white and yellow beeswax candles contain no additives. There is no lead in our wicks. And it does make you feel good, and that can significantly help with your moodswings - there's no denying it. . . we know you have them!

Does beeswax give off depression-fighting negative ions? Maybe. . . it certainly makes us feel good. Does beeswax fight allergies? Perhaps. . . we've noticed that our relatives who have cat allergies seem to fare better in our home when the candles are lit. Does beeswax clean the air? Friends of ours swear that their mother's furnace filters stayed clean once they switched to beeswax. And we can say that more and more research is being done every day.

So, why are they so expensive??!! Well, first off, you're buying a quality product and as the old adage goes, you get what you pay for. Secondly you have to understand that beeswax burns at a higher temperature and it burns much more slowly than other candles. It's like buying concentrated laundry detergent - you pay more for a smaller container, but it can last twice as long. And in our opinion, it's better for your health so there's no guilt involved! You can save the guilt for that piece of chocolate cake.

Source       : http://wannabeeonline.com/
By             : Wanna Bee
Category   : Raw Beewax Sell In Nepal
Posted By : Honey WholeSeller

Bee Pollen Benefits and Side Effects

For years, herbalists have touted bee pollen as an exceptionally nutritious food. They've even claimed it is a cure for certain health problems. Yet after years of research, scientists still cannot confirm that bee pollen has any health benefits. 

What Is Bee Pollen? 

Bee pollen contains vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, lipids, and protein. It comes from the pollen that collects on the bodies of bees. Bee pollen may also include bee saliva.

It's important to avoid confusing bee pollen with natural honey, honeycomb, bee venom, or royal jelly. These products do not contain bee pollen.

How Is Bee Pollen Used?

Bee pollen is available at many health food stores. You may find bee pollen in other natural dietary supplements as well as in skin softening products used for baby's diaper rash or eczema.

You may also hear recommendations for using bee pollen for alcoholism, asthma, allergies, health maintenance, or stomach problems. But before you take any natural product for a health condition, check with your doctor.

Bee pollen is also recommended by some herbalists to enhance athletic performance, reduce side effects of chemotherapy, and improve allergies and asthma.

At this point, medical research has not shown that bee pollen is effective for any of these health concerns.

Is Bee Pollen Safe? 

Bee pollen appears to be safe, at least when taken for a short term. But if you have pollen allergies, you may get more than you bargained for. Bee pollen can cause a serious allergic reaction -- including shortness of breath, hives, swelling, and anaphylaxis.

Bee pollen is not safe for pregnant women. A woman should also avoid using bee pollen if she is breastfeeding.

Source : http://www.webmd.com/

Category : Bee Pollen Benefits and Side Effects