BY Prof. Ahmad Al Khazim

Introduction

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s land area covers 2,250,000 km2 which account for about 70% of the landmass of the Arabian Peninsula. Most of the country is lowland plains and deserts. However, there are also wide ranges of hills and mountain chains which are associated with fertile valleys which are best suited for beekeeping more than any other agricultural produce. The country is characterized by hot and dry climatic conditions with low annual rates of precipitation. Despite its arid climatic conditions the country is endowed with diverse flora resources. About 2253 plant species belonging to 132 plant families have been reported to exist in the country. The rich and colorful landscapes and the diverse floral resources which flower at different seasons and ecologies make the country relatively suitable for beekeeping.  

History of beekeeping

Beekeeping is a longstanding traditional practice. Although written documents that indicate precisely when and where beekeeping started in Saudi Arabia are lacking, the practice can be traced back some 4,500 years, when the region was much wetter and covered with dense vegetation. It can be easily inferred that during these periods, beekeeping was widely practiced in many parts of the region such as ancient Egypt by about 2500 BC (Crane and Graham, 1985; Crane, 1983). Moreover, the presence of earthen paintings in Iraq that date back to 2000 BC (Crane, 1983) and rock paintings in Eastern Yemen (Giovanni, 2001) also indicate that beekeeping began long before the Islamic era (Crane, 1990). The written beekeeping history of Saudi Arabia can be traced back to the beginning of the first century, with references to the “Arabia Felix” as a land with plenty of honey (Jabra, 1951). Moreover, some written documents by Bilons (79 AD) referred to the region as one in which honey and beeswax were the dominant agricultural products. By the 7th century AD the Holy Qur’an included many statements (verses) about bees, beekeeping practices and the various uses of honey as an important remedy for  treatment of different  human disorders (Qur’an 16: 68-69). This evidences a history of honey bee exploitation in the country that extends at least 1,400 years back from now.

Types of honey bees

The local bee (Apis mellifera jemenitica) is the only race of A. mellifera which is naturally found in the country and beekeeping is mostly practiced using this race. A. m. jemenitica is the smallest race in the species and is well adapted to the semi-arid desert environmental conditions. The bees are reported to cope well with long dry periods, brief flowering intervals, temperatures up to 40°C, and annual rainfall of just 50-100 ml. Despites its better adaptation to the arid climatic conditions of the region A. m. jemenitica is very scarce and is well known for its relatively low productivity. As a result many beekeepers particularly beginners prefer to start with exotic hybrid bees from Egypt. The country imports about 200,000 packages of bees annually but 80% of them die after serving only one honey harvesting season. This can be attributed to weak or lack of adaptation to the dominant local arid climatic conditions. 

Beekeeping practice (traditional and improved) 

Beekeeping is widely practiced in many parts of the country and around 5000 households are estimated to be involved in beekeeping. About 70% of beekeepers prefer to keep local bees while the remaining are using exotic colonies and 70% of the bee colonies in the country are kept in traditional log hives (Fig.—), while the rest are kept in box hives. In the past, the log hives were made from tree trunks but currently they are precisely designed and assembled in cylindrical forms using machine-made timbers (Fig.) Many commercial beekeepers still use such traditional hives because of their better insulating properties and the volume of such hives better matches with the colony size of local honey bees than that of box hives. Moreover, beekeepers and consumers believe that honeys from traditional hives are better in quality because of their higher viscosity. 

Along with traditional beekeeping practices; box hive beekeeping with Lang troth-type hives is also widely practiced in Saudi Arabia (Fig. —). However, in most cases, the colony size does not even fully occupy the base of such hives, due to the brief flowering periods and long conditions of dearth in the area. As a result, beekeepers prefer to use modified box hives with fewer frames.

The average bee colony holding size of beekeepers is 351 with ranges of 5 to 3000 which is economically viable. Honey yield is generally low with average productivity of 1.25 kg and 2.25 kg/colony/harvest in traditional and box hives respectively. Considering the average frequency of harvest (3 times per annum) the productivity of a colony in traditional and box hives is estimated to be 3.7 kg and 6.6 kg honey /annum/colony respectively. Even though the productivity of a colony is generally low compared to other countries the high price (75$) of locally produced honey, makes beekeeping a very profitable business. As a result many individuals are attracted to beekeeping as a full or part- time activity.     

The mean annual household earnings from beekeeping is relatively high ($58,937.6), amounting to an average of 30% of the total annual incomes of beekeepers. This show that beekeeping plays a significant role in increasing and diversifying the incomes of rural communities.

Hive placement

In Saudi Arabia many colonies in traditional hives are kept stacked (Figs. ——). Commonly, about 30 bee colonies are kept stacked together. This type of hive placement is efficient in space and sheltering materials. It also requires less time to inspect and harvest honey. However, such stacking may cause robbing, drifting of bees and colonies could be susceptible to the rapid dissemination of bee diseases. It may also lead to serious overcrowding and resource competition among colonies. The stacks are usually placed on mobile stands allowing the colonies to be moved from place to place (Fig. —— 3). In general, large numbers of colonies are kept in one apiary site. 

Migratory beekeeping practices 

One of the fascinating chapters of beekeeping in the Kingdom is the extensive migratory beekeeping practices. Seasonal shortages of bee forage and seasonal and geographic differences in its availability drive many beekeepers to move their colonies from one area to another in search of better nectar and pollen resources. Sometimes, 100 or more honey bee colonies are kept on trailers that are towed behind vehicles, allowing migration from place to place (Fig. ——). Beekeepers move their bee colonies to follow the flowering of major bee forage plants. Some beekeepers reported migrating their bees between 3 and 6 times per annum. Migration sometimes leads to serious overcrowding of bee colonies (up to 500 colonies per site (Fig.—). Overcrowding becomes more intense during the flowering of Ziziphus spina-christi which is a source of high-grade and expensive honey in the country. 

Honey production, marketing and consumption 

Approximately 9,000 tons of honey are produced annually in the country. However, this production is far from realizing self-sufficiency. Beekeepers are very familiar to the different types of mono-floral honeys the major mono-floral honeys being produced in the country are: Ziziphus

 spna-christi (sider), A. tortilis (Sumra), A. orgina (Talah), Lavender (Dhurma), Hypoestes forskaolii (Mejran) and A. asak (Dhahana) honey in degree of quantity and importance. Among this, Ziziphus honey is the most popular and is highly preferred  by local consumers. However, Lavender (Dhurma), and H. forskaolii (Majran) honeys are rare and therefore very expensive.  Beekeepers usually harvest honey in comb and in liquid forms. Granulated honey is generally not favored by consumers, except the Mejran and A. asak honeys which usually crystalize very rapidly.

Honey is a highly valued product in Saudi Arabian culture and religion, and the country is one of the largest honey-consuming countries in the world. As a result, the demand for honey is high, and the country imports approximately 15,000 tons of honey annually to fill the gap in demand. Saudi Arabia is the fourth largest honey importing country in the world after EU, USA and Japan. 

Consumers are willing to pay higher prices for comb honeys, as they believe such honeys are less prone to adulteration. Moreover, they prefer locally produced honey over imported ones and are willing to pay five to eight times more money for local ones. The average price of locally produced honeys in Saudi Arabia is about 75$ which is 20 times more than the average price of honey in USA. The high price of locally produced honey could be related to the high promotional activities and the high cultural and religious values associated with honey in the society. Moreover, the subjective choices of consumers for local honeys, its scarcity, and the relatively high incomes of middle- and upper-class consumers who can afford to buy expensive honey may have contributed to its high price. 

The honey market channels are very diverse and large numbers of beekeepers directly sell their honeys to consumers based on long time established contacts. Besides these, there are open honey markets in small towns and cities on fixed days each week and beekeepers bring their honey to such markets and sell directly to consumers. The other big market channel is beekeepers sales of honeys to retailers and packers. Occasionally, in some towns and cities, honey is sold by auction and both consumers and retailers compete in the auction. The major share of honeys both (locally produced and imported) are packed and sold in shops and food groceries using retail containers across the country. Moreover, in big cities there are also specialized shops which exclusively sell honey. 

The beekeeping industry 

Beekeeping inputs such as bee hives and accessories are produced locally and are available across the country. In relation to package bee supply, there are well established supply lines and many dealers are importing large amounts of package bees and distribute them across the country through their local agents. As mentioned elsewhere there are well established market chains for both local and imported honeys. There are big bulk buyers, importers, processers and packers. Locally branded honeys are available in major malls, food groceries and small shops. Generally, the beekeeping industry of the country is developing well. Different actors in the value chains which are driven by market and profits are well established and seem very sustainable. The beekeeping industry of the country creates jobs, self-employment opportunities within families and generates incomes for close to  50,000 citizens in the country. 

Institutional supports 

Currently, there are many government and nongovernment institutions supporting the beekeeping sub-sector in the   country. The Ministry of Agriculture is playing a big role in supporting beekeepers in every possible way and encourages them to adopt the best beekeeping practices, knowledge and skills and acquire advanced beekeeping technologies. The ministry is also working hard to develop strategies, laws and regulations to support and protect the industry.  

The other important institutions supporting the sub-sector are the different universities in the country through their agriculture departments which offer courses up to PhD level. Moreover, many universities are taking part in conducting various research projects related to apiculture. Among these, King Saud University has taken the lion’s share in training students and conducting basic and applied researches pertinent to the beekeeping industry. The university currently has 7 senior    professors and doctors dedicated to apicultural research. The creation of the chair of Eng. Abdula Bagushan for bee research allows the Faculty to develop and enhance its scholarship. It is currently engaged in full-fledged apicultural researches and has published more than 50 papers in well-known ISI journals. It has also launched an Arabic language beekeeping magazine to support beekeepers. 

 There are many beekeepers associations in the country whose main objective is to support and enhance the collective

 efforts of the producers and improve the overall performance 

of the subsector. Among these Al-baha Beekeepers Cooperative Association is considered an outstanding organization. The association imports and procures various inputs, organizes training seminars and workshops and annually organizes local and international honey shows and exhibitions to promote marketing and create linkages.  Moreover, the association established a well- equipped honey quality assurance laboratory to test and certify local honey. Currently, the association with the collaboration of others is raising and planting major honey source plants to rehabilitate the degraded bee forage landscapes and to restore the natural resources of their areas. 

Opportunities 

  • Government supports: The government of Saudi Arabia supports the apicultural subsector through creating sound policies, rendering advisory services, advancing interest- free working capital to start or expand the existing beekeeping activities. Moreover, government budget allocates considerable funds  to conduct various apiculture research projects..
  •  Research backup: there are enormous ongoing research activities related to the subsector at different universities. The research agendas are mainly focused+ on bee products, bee genetics, bee flora and bee diseases that are pertinent to the fate of beekeeping in the country.
  • Attractive markets for honey: As has been mentioned above, the locally produced honey is very expensive and a large proportion of the society can afford to buy expensive honeys. The high price of honey makes the bee farm business attractive and profitable. As a result, many people are attracted to invest in the sector as full or part time producers.  

 Beekeeping Challenges:

  • Shortage of local bees:
  • Unavailability of sufficient local bees to start or to expand beekeeping activities remains a major bottleneck for this subsector. For the time being, there are no private or government centers that rear and supply local bee queens or local package bees. 
  • Mass importation of exotic bees:
  • The country imports annually about 200,000 package bees. The imported exotic bees may produce relatively more honey than local bees. However, in the long term, it is expected to affect the genetic diversity of local bees and reduce the adaptive traits of local bees. Moreover, the importation of exotic bees may result in the introduction and dissemination of various honeybee diseases and pests. 
  • Dry climatic conditions and associated shortage of bee forage 

Shortage of rain and high temperature are also major factors for low productivity of beekeeping in the country. Due to the scarcity of rainfall and moisture insufficiency, the contribution of annual bee plants in pollen and nectar sources is very limited. As a result, colony build up is very slow and colonies do not attain full capacity to collect significant amount of honey as in other regions. 

  • Honey bee threats and diseases: In the country, some migratory bee-eater birds and wasps are the most serious predators of honey bees. Moreover, wax moths and parasites such as Varro mites are significantly contribute to the decline of colony strength in the country.    

Beekeeping is a longstanding traditional practice. Although written documents that indicate precisely when and where beekeeping started in Saudi Arabia are lacking, the practice can be traced back some 4,500 years

The written beekeeping history of Saudi Arabia can be traced back to the beginning of the first century, with references to the “Arabia Felix” as a land with plenty of honey

The local bee (Apis mellifera jemenitica) is the only race of A. mellifera which is naturally found in the country and beekeeping is mostly practiced using this race

There are big bulk buyers, importers, processers and packers. Locally branded honeys are available in major malls, food groceries and small shops. Generally, the beekeeping industry of the country is developing well

Beekeeping is widely practiced in many parts of the country and around 5000 households are estimated to be involved in beekeeping

The country imports annually about 200,000 package bees. The imported exotic bees may produce relatively more honey than local bees. However, in the long term, it is expected to affect the genetic diversity of local bees

 The high price of honey makes the bee farm business attractive and profitable. As a result, many people are attracted to invest in the sector as full or part time producers