Mérida, Yucatán — Beekeeping production in Yucatán is a 450-million-peso business fueled by thousands of small-scale artisanal producers.
Around 90 percent of the state’s annual yield sold to other Latin American countries, the U.S., Japan and Germany.
More than 15 thousand tons of honey flows from the beehives of small-scale producers throughout Yucatán.
The local delegation of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (Sagarpa) stressed that despite the ups and downs of the start of last year, Yucatán continues to be Mexico’s No. 1 supplier of honey.
The federal agency stressed that the quality and taste of Yucatecan honey conquers international markets, and Germany is Yucatán’s best customer. Fifteen percent of all honey consumed in Germany comes from Yucatán.
Beekeeping in Yucatán is led mainly by artisanal producers from rural areas, Sagarpa said.
More than 11,200 producers collectively maintain 17,000 apiaries and 349,000 individual hives.
To guarantee consumers that honey produced in Yucatán meets high safety standards, the National Health, Food Safety and Quality Service (SENASICA) carries out a permanent monitoring program for toxic waste and pollutants.
The SENASICA staff checks that the honey produced in Mexico does not have physical, chemical or microbiological contaminants that could affect their export quality, the agency announced.
Source: Sagarpa
