TRADITIONAL METHODS OF BEEKEEPING AND HONEY PRODUCTION AMONG SMALL HOLDER FAMERS IN NASARAWA STATE NIGERIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33003/Keywords:
Traditional beekeeping, honey productionAbstract
Beekeeping is the art of rearing, breeding and managing honeybee colonies in artificial hives for economic gains leading to the production of valuable materials such as honey, bee wax, bee pollen, bee venom and royal jelly. Unfortunately, these enormous potentials are bedeviled with complicated constraints including the use of traditional bee hives, fire as a traditional practice in honey collection (harvesting) technique which reduces the quality and the quantity of honey and its products. This study assessed the traditional beekeeping methods in Nasarawa State, Nigeria, focusing on socio-economic characteristics, practices, constraints, and productivity. A survey of 150 beekeepers across five Local Government Areas (LGAs)—Nasarawa Eggon, Doma, Lafia, Kokona, and Wamba—revealed that beekeeping is predominantly male-dominated, with most practitioners aged 21–30 years. Log hive was dominant in Wamba, 90%, followed by Kokona, 80% and 56.7% in Doma while skep was higher in Lafia, 56.7%. The findings further indicate that Wamba produced the highest honey yields (21–25 litters/hive). Major constraints included theft, diseases, deforestation, and capital limitations, while government policies were perceived to be neutral. Beekeeping significantly enhanced livelihoods, with 76.7–86.7% of respondents reporting improved living standards. The study concludes that there is considerable potential to enhance beekeeping productivity and sustainability through interventions such as the introduction of improved beehive technologies, access to credit, training in modern apiculture practices, and stronger institutional support. Such measures could strengthen beekeeping as a viable and sustainable income source for rural communities in Nasarawa State and similar regions in Nigeria.
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