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Zambia Honey Council Elects New Board
2009 was full of activities for the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) and its membership from across the country. Apart from undergoing training in gender mean streaming and bulking centre management, members were called to elect a new board at the annual general AGM) meeting helding on October 14, 2009.
In an interview after the elections ZHC programmes office McDonald Kayuuna said that he was pleased that the AGM had performed its functions very well.
Mr. Kayuuna commended the commitment of ZHC members particularly beekeepers and parkers for their interactive involvement during the AGM. Mr. Kayuuna said as ZHC programmes officer he was encouraged to work hard for the beekeepers and parkers especially that others traveled as faras Mufumbwe in North-Western Province to attend the ZHC Annual General Meeting.
He has called on beekeepers to show the same commitment the exhibited during the AGM towards the programmes ZHC is introducing within their communities.
He said the success of any programme depends in most cases on the effective participation recipients in this case the beekeepers.
Meanwhile Mr. Kayuuna has called on the new board members to be proactive and actively engage with officers at the ZHC secretariat in order for them to understand the work of the council.
The new board members will be under going an orientation course for two days. The board members will be given an over view of ZHC programmes from its inception in 2005 to date.
The highlight of the course will be the intervention programmes and the expansion of Honey Area Associations to other districts in the country. The new board has held several meetings with stakeholders.
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ZHC has performed very well- HIVOS
In a joint interview officials from Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries(HIVOS) have said that the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) has done well in implementing its intervention programmes.
Grace Kanyanga of HIVOS Zambia Country Office and Sonene Ncube from HIVOS regional office in Zimbabwe both commended the ZHC for come up with an action plan on institutional and human resource capacity building which they have started implementing.
They said that ZHC had done very well and better than other organizations in terms of institutional capacity building.
The two officials said they were particularly pleased because HIVOS is one of the funders of ZHC programmes.
Early this year the Hivos Foundation one of the cooperating partners of the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) appointed a financial consultant to inspect its books as part of project monitoring activities.
Sonene and Grace said that the reason for instituting an audit was to verify the application of donor funds provided to ZHC for specific projects.
They said HIVOS is pleased with the results from the audit of ZHC books because it has helped show propriety in the use of HIVOS funds by ZHC as well as compliance with specific donor agreements and to make recommendations for improvement.
They said the audit was undertaken in line with Article 6.1 of the Hivos General Conditions, which states; “Hivos is authorized to institute n audit of the implementing organization with a view of checking the use of the funds made available. The organization must cooperate in such an audit in every way necessary”.
The inspection focused on key areas which are useful to the effective implementation of ZHC intervention programmes.
One of the major issues was the review of the structure of the board for appropriateness, specifically considering composition, quorum and authority limitations. A new board has since been elected.
The auditor also looked at other audited financial statements and management reports.
HIVOS foundation has extended the contract with the Zambia Honey Council for three years up-to 2011. Both Grace and Sonene said extending the ZHC/HIVOS contract was a sign of confidence in ZHC.
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Mark Chona is elected ZHC Board Chairman
Mark Chona who was elected Zambia Honey Council Board Chair has said he will use his vast experience in social development work and broad international network to help bring results for the benefit of beekeepers. Mr. Chona is formers Task-Force on Corruption Chairman. He brings to ZHC integrity and commitment to duty
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ZHC concludes training 3 district Associations on Gender and HIV/AIDS
 The Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) conducted training on Gender and HIV/AIDS mainstreaming in Kabompo, Kapiri-mposhi and Kaoma district in May 2009.
Participants were drawn from Honey Area Association located in the three districts. The Training in Kapiri-mposhi was conducted by Corridors of Hope II an HIV/AIDS organization.
The Kabompo training was opened by ZHC programmes officer and conducted by Mr. Kaumba Matoka. In Kaoma the facilitators of the workshop were Mr. Kingsley Chinga Chabaya and Mr. Kenny Lufuko.
The training workshops were successfully conducted over a two day period in each of the three districts.
It was very clear from the reports on pre-tests done on the three workshops that bee-keepers had very little information on STI, HIV/AIDS and Gender despite many organizations that have carried out education programmes on the same.
The positive aspect was that bee-keepers were provided with information on STI, HIV/AIDS and Gender that will help in the prevention of the pandemic. ZHC is likely to spread the training programme on gender and HIV/AIDS in order to cover the large population of bee-keepers.
The training workshops HIV/AIDS and Gender should be continued so that more information can be disseminated to the bee-keepers in order fully address the pandemic among them.
One major problem that was identified by the participants in all the three districts was stigmatization. In the Kapiri-mposhi training two of the participants gave their sad experience with stigma and discrimination as a result of HIV/AIDS.
One of the participants gave an example of someone he knew who was extremely stigmatized and discriminated against to a point where died not from the disease but from the mistreatment he received at the hands of his friends and relatives.
The bee-keepers promised not stigmatize and discriminate each other as a result of the pandemic.
The participants acknowledged
the fear surrounding the HIV/AIDS pandemic but promised to take extra care and not to discriminate among themselves.
The bee-keepers appreciated the efforts ZHC was putting training them in HIV/AIDS and gende awareness among their communities. The said the could not wait to share and train other bee-keepers in Gender main streaming.
Mean while all bee-keeper interviewed
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How can we differentiate 100% pure honey
There is a rising number of consumers of Honey who are asking me this question.
As someone who has closely followed the work of the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC), I could have said ask ZHC; Instead I would like to share my experience and thoughts about this issue from a honey consumer’s perspective.
The term "adulterated honey" means that the honey has been mixed with glucose, dextrose, molasses, sugar syrup, invert sugar, flour, starch, or any other similar product, other than the floral nectar gathered, processed, and stored in the comb by honey bees.
Legal standards and requirements for foods, including honey quality, and tests for honey adulteration vary widely amongst countries and some may not meet the wish of every consumer around the world.
Personally, when selecting honey in a shop, I think it is almost impossible to tell the bad from the good by just looking at the honey content through the bottle or studying its food and nutrition labels.
I always go for the trusted or more known brands. How then can we differentiate between 100% pure honey and adulterated honey?
There's a simple way which I have tried to verify the purity of honey: Observe how liquid honey comes down into a glass of water.
Pure honey does not immediately dissolve in water; you will notice that it takes a bit of effort to stir it in the water to dissolve the lumpy bits, whereas sugar tends to dissolve easily in a jiggery as you drop them into the water.
However, test result are sometimes not that clear because different honey varieties have different viscosity, some are denser and thicker than others, and obviously honey in cream form, even if it's adulterated with other substance, will not dissolve as easy as liquid honey in water.
One of the surest ways to get 100% pure honey in a shop is to look for the quality assurance mark (QAM) on the product. It is issued by the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) in conjunction with the Zambia Bureau of Standards.
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 Early this year the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) and the Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a clear understanding on how to carry out inspections at operational premises of companies that are involved in the processing and packaging of honey.
Both institutions agreed to collectively establish a quality assurance mark that would be placed on labels of honey processing companies that have been inspected by ZABS and meet the set standards for production and processing. Under the MoU the ZHC will provide the Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) with a guideline for inspections.
Some of the guidelines will include ensuring that companies have lities that do not exposed honey to contamination. adequate drainage and waste disposal facilities that do not exposed honey to contamination. ZABS Inspectors will also ensure that the equipment and materials that are used in the processing and storage of honey are made of non-toxic materials without rusting effects. Other requirements are a steady supply of hot and cold water. The MoU was signed on January 16, 2008.
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Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) Director Mr. Mataa Mukelabai has said that the certifications in the honey sector introduced by the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) under the Quality Assurance Scheme will help in value addition to locally produced honey.
 Mr. Mukelabai said that for many years now locally produced honey had lacked value addition because there was no set guidelines for monitoring and ensuring that standards in harvesting and processing of honey were maintained. This he says led to most of the honey being sold in raw form for a very low premium. He said that it was important the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) had decided to get certification in order to improve performance in the honey sector in the country.
He said that despite the standards being set by ZHC with other stakeholders in the honey industry, it was good that the honey mother body had acquired certification of a third party in this case the Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) so that there in independence in the enforcement of quality standards in the honey sector. He said the national standards body will work with ZHC to ensure that more processors and honey producers understand the guidelines which will be used during inspections at honey processing and packaging companies.
Mr. Mukelabai said that ZABS will enforce the quality standards set out under the Quality Assurance Scheme to the fullest. Mr. Mukelabai has also appeal to honey processing companies to maintain very high standards during production in order to increase the value of local honey.
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Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) Co-ordinator Bill Kalaluka has said that volumes of locally produced honey accessing lucrative markets both local and international will increase with the introduction of the quality assurance scheme by ZHC.
 Mr. Kalaluka said this after the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between ZHC and the Zambia Bureau of Standards in January this year. Mr. Kalaluka said that the Quality Assurance Scheme was designed to help improve and protect the quality of honey throughout the production process from the bee-keeper to the shelf at a retail outlet.
He said the scheme from training bee-keepers to improve on the method of producing and harvesting storing good quality honey and wax. Under the Quality Assurance Scheme honey processors and packers are expected to adhere to a strict standard of processing and packaging honey to ensure that the quality meets set standards of a good product.
He said that it was the observance to standards of producing good quality honey under the Quality Assurance Scheme that will guarantee locally produced honey access to markets around the globe. Mr. Kalaluka said that Zambia has been producing a lot of honey which was unfortunately going to waste because of failure to maintain highest standards of properly processing and packaging by most producers.
He was however pleased to note that his organization was effectively contributing to ensuring that locally produced honey was accessing markets that provide a higher premium for good quality bee products. Mr. Kalauka explained that under the Quality Assurance Scheme the Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) would help to regulate the process of production and ensure observance of high quality standards. The ZABS has already carried out some inspections at honey processing companies.
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The Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) has started the process of main-streaming gender and HIV/AIDS into its programmes and organization structure. The ZHC has already started reviewing the existing prevailing implementation environment in the country in order to build the necessary capacities in main-streaming gender and HIV/AIDS issues into its programmes.
 According to the preliminary preparatory report made available to the staff reporter existing literature emphasizes a number of key gender in Zambia, which must be addressed to achieve gender equality in terms of creating the same conditions and opportunities for both men and women to participate and benefit from interventions in the honey sector.
Some gender issues which to not promote equity among men and women have been Identified in many areas of life in the country. Contradictions in the Republican Constitution have also contributed to the discrimination of women. Where as Article 11 of the Zambian constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex (Male or Female); Article 23(4) of the same constitution negates it by allowing the application of customary laws which treat women as second class to men in terms of social, economic, legal and reproductive rights.
The ZHC is also working to ensure that the is HIV/AIDS pandemic prevention is not used to discriminate against any individual in the honey sector. The burden of HIV/AIDS falls disproportionately on women and girls such as higher infection and death rates are higher when compared to infections among men. The greater burden of care for HIV/AIDS patients with negative implications on the participation of women in economic activities and the ferminization of poverty and economic dependence on men has weakened the standing of women in society.
Although women make a meaningful contribution to economic activities in the country their role is not appreciated even by well established financial institutions. Micro-economic policy changes and measures have also contributed to the worsening living conditions and high poverty levels especially among women.
It is this discrimination and marginalization of women in economic activities that has encouraged the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) to start main-streaming gender and HIV/AIDS issues into its progammes and structure so that women and men can benefit from the intervention activities in the honey sector.
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The Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) has developed a Quality Assurance Mark (QAM) to encourage bee-keepers in rural areas conform to ZHC best practices and field standards in the production of honey and other bee products. The Quality Assurance Mark has been developed in collaboration with the Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZBS).
 Bee-keepers who meet the required standards in honey production and other bee-products will be awarded certificates of excellence with the Quality Assurance Mark which is a guarantee of good quality. The certificates will be awarded in three progressive categories of bronze, silver and gold.
Honey processors and packers who meet the quality standards in terms of field and processing standards as laid down by the Zambia Bureau of Standards and the ZHC will also be awarded certificates of excellence with a Quality Assurance Mark which will be printed on their products. ZHC will also carry out promotional programmes in the print and electronic media to raise awareness of the QAM in an effort to increase consumption of honey in the country.
Below is the specimen of the quality assurance mark (QAM) which has been developed to encourage bee-keepers and honey processors to apply best field practices in the production of honey and other bee products. The number on the quality assurance mark will be specific to an individual bee-keeper or processor to make it easy to identify the source of honey and other bee products under the QAM programme.
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ZHC Board Approves Intervention Plan |
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ZHC forms District Associations |
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The Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) has employed Ms. Siphiwe Mbambara as the new Administrative Assistant.
The appointment of Ms. Mbambara comes after the departure of Ms. Nyamwaya Munthali who served as Administrative Assistant for three years from 2005 until March 2007.
Ms. Sipiwe Mbambara was appointed after the ZHC scrutinized a number of applicants who were interested in working for the Zambia Honey Council.
Ms. Siphiwe Mbambara officially joined the ZHC on June 1, 2007. She has a BSc degree in Environmental and Natural Resources Management from the University of Zambia.
As an advocate of sustainable development through the sustainable use of natural resources Ms. Mbambara hopes to contribute effectively to the ZHC’s work of improving the livelihoods of honey producers in rural areas.
In an interview with this reporter Ms. Mbambara said that she has always been interested in working with organizations that help rural dwellers to improve their lives using natural resources such as honey, timber and other forest products.
She said that she did not hesitate to put in an application when an opportunity arose to work within the environment through the Zambia Honey Council. Ms. Mbambara said the few months she has so far worked for ZHC have been very inspiring because of the organization’s work in ensuring the growth of the honey industry through improving production standards and the quality of local honey.
As an environmentalist Ms. Mbambara hopes to work for the ZHC for many years come. ZHC in conjunction with other stake holders in the honey industry adopted a field standard of honey in 2006 and started the training of honey producers to produce the required standard in May 2007.
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International Consultant to Carry out Honey Bee Diseases Study
 Mt. Makulu Research Institute with funds from the World Bank has in conjunction with the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) engaged Dr. Nguzi a honey bee expert from Belgium to carry out a study on the prevalence of honey-bee diseases with emphasis on the presence American Foul-Brood-AFB in Zambia.
Dr. Nguzi will work with local experts in honey bee disease analysis Dr. Chipili and Mr. Mutakele both from the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI)/ Mt. Makulu Research Institute.
The purpose of the study is to prove the absence of American Foul-Brood on locally produced honey.
Processors of Zambian honey intending to export to South Africa are constrained by the import requirement of irradiation against suspected American Foul-brood - AFB imposed on
honey from Zambia by South African authorities.
Processors wishing to export honey into South Africa have to package honey in expensive irradiation containers as determined by South African authorities making Zambian honey very expensive when compared to honey from other countries. Irradiation would also make Zambian honey non-organic and unattractive to South African consumers.
Meanwhile ZHC National Co-ordinator Bill Kalaluka is hopeful the study will help to facilitate the export of Zambian honey to South Africa and other countries with similar import restrictions on honey.
The study will be conducted over a period of twenty days, with the first ten days being used to determine the presence of AFB.
Dr. Nguzi will also train two Ministry of Agriculture staff to acquire skills in identification and eradication of AFB. American Foul-brood - AFB is a bacteria honey bee disease which affects honey.
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Bee-Keepers Complete Training Course in Bulking Centre Management and Honey Production
One hundred and fifty-nine Bee-Keepers from Mayukwayukwa, Kaskeka and Katunda resettlement areas in Kaoma district have successfully completed the course in good quality honey production and bulking centre management which was provided by the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC).
The training was designed to help bee-keepers improve on the method of producing and harvesting good quality honey and wax.
The training which involved both the practical and theory also included a two way interaction between bee-keepers and the buyers. The interaction has resulted in a better understanding by bee-keepers on what good quality bee products are required by traders.
One of the participants in the training programme Mr. Musole who is also a district information contact person for Kaoma District Honey Association said he was happy to have received the training in good quality honey production and bulking management.
He said that prior to the training most bee-keepers in the area did not have the knowledge on establishing and management of bulking centres.
Mr. Musole also said that the training has helped bee-keepers in Mayukwayukwa to start working together and avoid being exploited by middle-men who usually offered uneconomical prices for bee-products individual bee-keepers.
And Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) National Co-ordinator Bill Kalaluka has said that he was pleased that his organization was effectively contributing to the mobilization of bee-keepers and transfer of technology through the training programme.
He said that proper management of bulking centres is very important if bee-keepers are to attract buyers who offer a good price for honey and bees-wax. He said bee-keepers in Mayukwayukwa are now producing good quality honey and bees-wax.
The training will move to Kapirimposhi and the rest of the country very soon.
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ZHC Bulking Centres Operational
 The Bulking Centres which were set-up by honey producers with the help of the ZHC in Mayukwayukwa, Nabowa and Katunda of Kaoma district have started operating.
In an interview with the “Bee-Keeper” ZHC National Co-ordinator Bill Kalaluka said that he was pleased that the Intervention plan which was developed by the ZHC was beginning to bear fruit.
He said establishing Bulking Centres is part of the intervention plan which will be extended to Kabompo, Kapiri-mposhi and other honey producing districts of Zambia.
Mr. Kalaluka said that twelve Bulking Centre Operators were trained from among honey producers in Mayukwayukwa to manage four Bulking Centres on a pilot phase.
He said that since the centres started operating in August honey producers have been able to collect and store valuable marketable volumes of honey.
The setting-up of Bulking Centres in Mayukwayukwa has also attracted a large number of honey traders to the area most of whom have said it is cost effective and quality is guaranteed when they purchase honey from a designated depot.
The Bulking Centres are in places where honey producers are trained in good quality honey production.
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Zambia Bureau of Standards Committed to Working with ZHC
Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) standards Manager Mrs. Margaret Lungu has said that the quality standards body is committed to a long working relationship with the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC).
She said the national standards body will work with ZHC to ensure that more processors and honey producers understand the developed field standards of locally produced honey.
Mrs. Lungu said that ZABS is happy with the work ZHC is doing in helping bee-keepers in rural areas to develop from subsistence honey production to production that offers higher financial retains for rural families.
She said the primary activity of the national standards body was to check the standards of goods and services being provided by producers in the country.
She said the role played by the standards body in raising levels of quality, safety, reliability, efficiency and interchangeability of goods and services should be appreciated and supported by both consumers and producers of goods and services if we are to maintain the production of goods and services of a higher quality in the country.
Mrs. Lungu explained that the working relationship between ZABS and the ZHC is a consultative process which has led to the approval of standards on bee products developed by ZHC.
The Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) will be working with the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) to carry out inspections at honey processing plants to ensure that hygiene is maintained and processors meet the field and processing standards as set out by ZHC to qualify for the Quality Assurance Mark.
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Locally Produced Honey Included on ZNFU SMS System
Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) National Co-ordinator Bill Kalaluka has said that locally produced honey has been included on the Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) SMS market information system for selected commodities.
Mr. Kalaluka said that both producers and traders of honey will greatly benefit from the inclusion of honey on the ZNFU SMS information system.
And ZNFU Liaison Officer Coillard Hamusimbi has said the farmer's union is happy that more commodities are getting on ZNFU's trade and market information SMS system which helps to link producers to buyers from across the country.
He said that he was particularly pleased that honey was now on the ZNFU's SMS information system.
Mr. Hamusimbi explained that ZNFU follows a very stringent check-up regime before accepting a commodity to be on its SMS system.
He said that for a commodity like honey to be included on the ZNFU SMS system simply means that honey has met certain standards that qualify it to be on the SMS system. For a commodity to be included on ZNFU's SMS system it has to be of economic value and operating in a structured market system with a defined supply chain from the producer to the trader and consumer.
Some of the benefits to honey producers will be easy identification and communication with traders offering profitable prices. The ZNFU commodity SMS system will also help both the producers and traders of honey to save time and money which they could have wasted trying to find a producer or a buyer of honey.
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 The Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) Board meeting which was held on February 26, 2007, has asked ZHC Chairman Bill Kalaluka to start the process of implementing the Bee-Products Intervention Plan.
The ZHC Board which is mostly composed of actual honey producers from rural areas approved the plan after a lengthy debate on whether it would help bee-products producers improve the quality of their products for specific local and international markets.
The Bee-Products Intervention Plan was developed after a Bee Products expert who was contracted by ZHC with the help of SHEMP ADC conducted a situation analysis of bee-products production in Mayukwayukwa rural resettlement area. The intervention Plan will initially start in Kaoma, Kaphirimposhi and Kabompo.
Other issues discussed by the ZHC Board were formation of District Associations in Mumbwa and Itezhi-tezhi, ZHC vision, production of newsletter and setting of ZHC web-site.
New members were also added to the Board, these were from the Kabompo, Kaphirimposhi and Kaoma District Honey Associations. The ZHC has included a good number of actual honey producers to its board so that the bee-products producers in villages through those that represent them on the board can articulate the problems they face in producing and marketing good quality honey.
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Implementation of the Zambia Honey Council Bee-Products Intervention Plan will be launched on April 17, 2007 in Mayukwayukwa, Nabowa and Katunda by ZHC Bill Kalaluka.
In an interview Mr. Kalaluka said that ZHC’s short term objective was to set realistic and achievable standards for domestic-honey. He said that through the intervention plan the council will prepare field standards that are practical and cost effective in order to add value to bee products produced using bark hives.
He said that facilitating capacity building in appropriate knowledge and skills especially in market product specifications and field standards will result in attracting good markets that will offer members of the council a good price. He also said that the Zambia Honey Council expects bee-keepers to understand and be able to articulate a set of best practices for working with bees and proper handling of honey.
The intervention plan starts with pre-pilot training in market product specifications and field standards and on the job pilot training. Other areas of the course will include management of bulking centres where bee-keepers will be expected to learn how to understand their trade as a business.
Bee-keepers will also be taught how to control and maintain the quality of honey and other bee-products at the bulking centres using simple practical equipment. The quality control part of the training will include grading and organizing, moisture content, weighing of bee-products, record keeping and hygiene.
The pre-pilot training will consist of initial set of interactions between experienced bee-peekers and experienced buyers of bee-products. The challenges facing bee-keepers and that faced by buyers in purchasing good quality honey will be articulated through an intensive participatory process.
The training programme will involve eighty bee-keepers selected from Mayukwayukwa, Nabowa and Katunda. The programme will end on May 10, 2007 and then move to either Kabompo or Kapiri-mposhi.
Forest Fruits Ltd. will conduct the training course. The company was selected to conduct the courses because of the experience that it has acquired over the years in buying and exporting honey and other bee-products of a specific quality for specific markets locally and Europe. ZHC policy on the intervention plan is that it should be a private sector driven programme.
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On February 26, 2007 Stakeholders met to discuss the Bee-Products Intervention Plan which will be used by the Zambia Honey Council in conjunction with SHEMP ADC to address the problem of quality and marketing of bee-products in Zambia.
The meeting was called by ZHC and SHEMP ADC in order to get feedback on the bee-products intervention plan from various stakeholders. Stakeholders were generally happy with the objectives and activities contained in the intervention plan.
However, it was noted by stakeholders that the ten months time frame allocated for the implementation of the plan was too short.
 But facilitator of the meeting Mr. Gerrit Struyf who is SHEMP ADC Agribusiness Consultant and Team Leader explained that based on their experiences with other intervention programmes the bee products intervention plan would be achieved within the stipulated time.
Another concern raised was the ecological damage that is likely to occur due to massive production of bark-hives on which the intervention plan is centred to which the facilitator said a mitigation strategy had been developed to reduce on the damage.
The intervention plan includes the setting-up of bulking centres and processing equipment to ensure that quality is maintained during harvest time.
Organizations that participated in the stakeholders meeting are the Zambia Honey Council, SHEMP ADC, Kapiri-mposhi District Honey Association, Kaoma District Honey Association, Kabompo District Honey Association.
Others were Profit Zambia, MATEP Market Advisor Mr. Chibembe Nyalugwe, OPPAZ Marketing Officer Sarah Banda, Forest Fruits Ltd Director Daniel Ball, North-Western Bee-Keepers Association, Honeybee Farm Ltd Director Ian Asherwood, Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZABS) Standards Officer Prisca Shapele, Mwame Enterprises Webby Mwape, Munati Agro-Forestry Ltd Wamusheke Phiri, University of Zambia Department of Food Science Head of Dept. Nyambe Mukandawire and SNV Advisor Lungowe Lutangu.
The Bee-Products Intervention Plan was developed after a situation analysis was done in December 2006 by a Bee-Products expert from Germany.
The plan focuses on improving quality of Bark-Hive honey production, which comprises 80% of all honey produced in Zambia.
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 This building is one of the premises selected for a bulking centre it is situated 73 km from Kaoma in the forests of Mayukwayukwa. The Zambia Honey Council has identified three locations in Mayukwayukwa area of Kaoma District where bulking centres will be set-up for the pilot phase of the bee-products intervention plan. The Bulking centres will be situated at Mayukwayukwa main, Nabowa and Katunda. Twelve bulking centre operators from the four areas will be trained in the management of the centres. Operators will under go on the job practical pilot training in field standards and best practices using simple/practical equipment. Bulking centre operators will ensure the honey collected is of the highest quality.
ZHC Chairman Bill Kalaluka with SHEMP ADC Agribusiness Consultant listening to Titus Musole and other bee-keepers in Mayukwayukwa.
 This was during the identification of suitable sites for bulking centre
Zambia Honey Council Chairman Bill Kalaluka says that honey producers and bee-products traders will increase the volume of their business because of the setting up of bulking centres in selected pilot areas around the country.
He said that traders and processors in bee-products will benefit from bulking centres in several ways. Traders will have access to established quality standards of honey with product specifications for particular markets.
Bulking centres will also make it easier for traders and honey producers to buy and sell their products. Traders will not have to travel long distances looking for honey but they will get the commodity straight from designated centres.
Mr. Kalaluka said the establishment of bulking centre will help traders save a lot of money which could have been wasted on traveling looking for honey and other bee-products even in places where a buyer is not certain to find the commodity.
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In its effort of ensuring that there is co-ordination and a smooth flow of information among stakeholders in the bee-products industry around the country the Zambia Honey Council has formed District Honey Associations in Mumbwa and Itezhi-tezhi district.
The District Associations will also operate as District Information Networks for Mumbwa and Itezhi-tezhi.
The formation of the Associations was made possible with support from the Royal Danish Embassy, which runs a number of projects in Mumbwa.
The District Associations are composed of actual honey producers from villages around Mumbwa and Itezhi-tezhi.
Each of the executive members elected to the District Honey Associations represents and comes from a particular village in Mumbwa and Itezhi-tezhi.
The Chairman for Mumbwa Mr. Peter Simuchembu lives in Mumba village, while the secretary Peter Minyoi comes from Moono village. Sylvester Hamanyanga Chairman for Itezhi-tezhi comes Shimbizhi while the trustee Ms. Mable Kayunga come from Kaingu village.
The elections were held in February 2007 in Mumbwa.
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Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) Chairman Bill Kalaluka has said that his organization is determined to help develop the honey industry in the country.
He said that since its formation the ZHC has held meetings with several stakeholders in the honey sub sector. He said the meetings were aimed at uniting all efforts towards developing the honey industry and facilitating the exchange of information among members of the council, honey industry stakeholders and other organizations to further the goals of the council .
 Mr. Kalaluka was speaking during an interview with the Beekeeper over the problems that the honey industry has been facing over the past forty years in Zambia.
He said that over the years the problem with the honey sector was that too much emphasis was placed on developing the honey producer supply side and leaving out other players in the sector.
Mr. Kalaluka said that important players like, processors, traders, in-put providers,Zambia Bureau of Standards, Laboratories, certification bodies and other service providers were left out of the programmes that were aimed at developing the honey industry.
He said one of the achievements of ZHC was the establishment of a Zambian Honey Standard on March 27, 2006 which was done in collaboration with Zambia Bureau of Standards and in consultation with the Food and Drug Department, Certification bodies.
He explained that apart from bringing together various stakeholders in the industry ZHC was created to help market bee products and represent the Zambian stakeholders and as a link to other region and international Organizations providing services in the honey industry.
Mr. Kalaluka thanked HIVOS for the financial support they have continued to render to the Zambia Honey Council since its formation. He explained that HIVOS has been instrumental in financing ZHC meetings that brought together actual honey producers and traders. He also thanked the Netherlands Development Agency (SNV) for providing advisory support and office space.
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Kapiri-mposhi District Honey Association Chairman Mr. Alinani Mugara, has said that the future of the honey industry now looks bright since the formation of Kapirimposhi district information network by the Zambia Honey Council.
 Mr. Alinani Mugara who started bee-keeping in 1988 said that many honey producers got interested to join the ZHC because it is structured in a way that involves all stakeholders in the honey industry.
He said that producers were now finding it easy to get together and hold meetings to discuss their common problems and solutions affecting the industry in the district. He also explained that ZHC has since formed information networks from the district right down to the villages which are called camp information networks.
Meanwhile Kapirimposhi Forestry Officer Mr. Febian Lemba has said that the forestry department in the district has started benefitting from the information networks established by ZHC. He said that the forestry department was now able to get statistics on the number of honey producers and any other information concerning the honey industry in the district. Mr. Lemba was speaking during the Kapirimposhi District Honey Association meeting which was attended by ZHC Chairman Bill Kalaluka.
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Zambia has approximately 30, 000 beekeepers, gatherers and producers who collect honey and other bee products. The majority of these about 80% are traditional gatherers or small scale producers who use bark or log hives. Traditional beekeepers do not produce economical quantities and their bee products are of poor quality with bee wax as waste product. Bee products collected from bark hives do not and are unlikely to ever meet the required specifications to enter the export markets of Western Europe and America.
 The Zambia Honey Council the situation is bound to change in favour of the traditional honey producers. ZHC has put in place an information district network that directly links its programmes to the traditional honey producers in the villagers around the country. Locally traditional/small scale producers cannot find a commercially viable market for their bee products. A large quantity of their sub-standard honey is sold at very low prices to traders with very little benefit to traditional and smallholder beekeepers. The rest of the honey is converted into a powerful honey-based beer and consumed within the villages from where it is produced. The problems that lead to this sad state of affairs among traditional/Actual honey producers is lack of information and training for these producers which has resulted in the poor quality of their bee-products.
However the situation is changing for the better because the Zambia Honey Council has started to set up District Information Networks that are designed to help traditional/smallscale beekeepers access information and produce good quality bee products. The information network will link and carry information to different parties in the sector such as traders, producers, processors and other service providers. ZHC will train trainers notably Forestry Extension Officers, who will in turn filter the information and practices to traditional beekeeper groups and individuals. ZHC has also sought the assistance of SHEMP Agribusiness Development Agency to help it develop a market for bark hive bee products to benefit traditional/smallholder beekeepers, intermediaries and the consumer. 
However the situation is changing for the better because the Zambia Honey Council has started to set up District Information Networks that are designed to help traditional/smallscale beekeepers access information and produce good quality bee products. The information network will link and carry information to different parties in the sector such as traders, producers, processors, trainers, input suppliers, certification bodies and honey analysis laboratories. ZHC will engage trainers within the honey sector to train traditional producers on how to produce and harvest bee products of a specific standard for specific markets. ZHC will select trainers from companies that have the experience in producing and supplying bee products of a specific standard for local and international markets. Those who will receive the training will in turn filter the information and practices to other traditional beekeeper groups and individuals. ZHC has also sought the assistance of SHEMP Agribusiness Development Agency to help it develop a market for bark hive bee
products to benefit traditional/Actual Honey producers intermediaries and the consumer. For the ZHC to effectively conduct its linkages services in the areas of markets, input supply, access to finance and extension services they need to have a reliable means of communicating with all traditional/actual honey producers, honey processors, traders (Wholesalers and Traders) internal and external. ZHC proposed to set up a network of its members along the following lines.
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Honey traders and processors have registered business addresses and contact details (All can be reached by telephone)
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Actual Honey producers mostly organized through producer groups are mostly rural based and not directly reachable by modern (telephone, fax, SMS) communication means. ZHC intends to set up a producer network, which will be based on contact persons (who have access to communication means), which have links/are part of honey producer groups. The contact persons will ensure that a two-way communication between the honey producers and ZHC is operationalized.
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ZHC will therefore be able to link both sections of its members (producers as well as traders/processors) to each other as well as to other relevant stakeholders in the honey sector (training providers, input suppliers, government bodies etc) for the benefit of all stakeholders in the honey industry including traditional beekeepers.
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Honey Industry to grow through ZHC
Proprietor of PECO industries Mr. Chikonde who is also a honey packer/processor has said that the honey industry will grow with the efforts of the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) because of the approach it has developed in dealing with the problems affecting the honey industry. Mr. Chikonde said that from the ZHC meetings he has attended so far it was evident that ZHC's hands on approach of involving and bringing together all stakeholders in addressing problems in the honey industry will produce good results.
 He said establishing of district information networks by ZHC would ease communication between traders and producers. Mr. Chikonde said that it has been difficult in the past to know which producers had produced good quantities of good quality because of lack of communication. He said that past efforts ignored the importance of information and was pleased that ZHC had started pilot projects in three district but he has urged the council to extend information networks to other districts.
Mr. Chikonde said that traders and processors like himself have in the past faced many problems among them is lack of affordable credit finance and fragmentation in the honey sector. He said that the biggest problem has been the fragmentation and lack of co-ordination among traders and processors in addressing issues affecting the sub-sector. Mr. Chikonde also sited lack of processing equipment and transport as some of the problems that have hindered the growth of the industry in Zambia.
Mr. Chikonde has appealed to other bee-products traders and processors to get on board and be part of a collective effort with ZHC in developing the honey industry. He said t it is not easy to over come the problems individually but he was confident that collectively under the Zambia Honey Council (ZHC) most of the problems will be solved.
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