Skip to main content

There have been no beehive losses in Cuba. Unable to import pesticides due to the embargo, the island now exports valuable organic honey

By
Organic honey
When the Caribbean state was no longer able to afford pesticides – which have been linked with declining bee populations – it made a virtue out of a necessity

Long known for its cigars and rum, Cuba has added organic honey to its list of key agricultural exports, creating a buzz among farmers as pesticide use has been linked to declining bee populations elsewhere.

Organic honey has become Cuba’s fourth most valuable agricultural export behind fish products, tobacco and drinks, but ahead of the Caribbean island’s more famous sugar and coffee, said Theodor Friedrich, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) representative for Cuba.

“All of [Cuba’s] honey can be certified as organic,” Friedrich told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “Its honey has a very specific, typical taste; in monetary value, it’s a high-ranking product.“

After the collapse in 1991 of the Soviet Union, Cuba’s main trading partner, the island was unable to afford pesticides due to a lack of foreign currency, coupled with the US trade embargo. By necessity, the government embraced organic agriculture, and the policies have largely stuck.

Now that the United States is easing its embargo following the restoration of diplomatic ties last year, Cuba’s organic honey exporters could see significant growth if the government supports the industry, bee keepers said.

Cuba produced more than 7,200 tonnes of organic honey in 2014, worth about $23.3m, according to government statistics cited by the FAO.

The country’s industry is still tiny compared with honey heavyweights such as China, Turkey and Argentina. But with a commodity worth more per litre than oil, Cuban honey producers believe they could be on the verge of a lucrative era.

With 80 boxes swarming with bees, each producing 45kg (100lb) of honey a year, farm manager Javier Alfonso believes Cuba’s exports could grow markedly in the coming years.

Publish By : theguardian.com



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

US unions plan attack on Donald Trump in attempt to derail presidential bid

By
Concerned labor group leaders are organizing ad campaigns and phone banks as Trump’s populist message on trade and jobs draws in union voters The prospect of a Donald Trump nomination has labor leaders scrambling to hold the line as the Republican frontrunner’s appeal to disaffected working-class voters threatens to upset the traditional political calculus. The majority of America’s almost 15 million unionized workers can be usually be relied upon to back the Democratic candidate in a presidential year, but leaders are concerned by Trump’s populist message on trade and jobs – and his insistence that union workers are just one of many groups on a long list of those he claims “love” him. Published By - Theguardian.com - Sports New, LifeStyle News, Politics news, UK and world political comment and analysis: Tuesday 26 April 2016 12.00 BST
Post a Comment
Read more

North Carolina's 'bathroom bill' battle embarrasses residents on both sides | TheNews Linzer

By
The escalating fight over LGBT rights has turned the historically sophisticated, inclusive southern state into a battleground of intolerance In the family of southern states, North Carolina has long been the cousin who made it. It enjoyed excellent universities, world-class industries, smooth roads and political stability. A whole class of people arose called “halfbacks”: people who retired from the north-east states to Florida, only to realize North Carolina was better and moved halfway back. Now, with the state squaring off against the federal government about who can use which bathrooms, the state finds itself at the pointy end of jokes, and lumped in with more strident southern states like Mississippi and – most bitterly – South Carolina. It’s unfamiliar for North Carolinians. It’s uncomfortable. And many are asking: how did we get here? How did the high-achieving, well-educated cousin end up with a black eye and busted knuckles, reeling over a public toilet? Continue reading....
Post a Comment
Read more

Sally Faulkner's former husband claims he took children to Lebanon due to her 'relationships'

By
Ali al-Amin’s claim comes as Channel Nine defends involvement in ‘story profoundly in public interest’ The estranged husband of Brisbane woman Sally Faulkner says he took their two children to  Lebanon  because he “just wasn’t OK” with her new partner being prominent in their lives. Ali al-Amin has been speaking to  Australian media  as Channel Nine explicitly defended its involvement in “a story that not only is profoundly in the public interest but also one the public is interested in”. Nine also announced it would fully investigate how four of its staff came to be arrested in Beirut, charged with kidnapping and finally released on Wednesday,  apparently in exchange for compensation . Amin claimed on the Kyle and Jackie O Kiis radio show on Thursday that he decided to take the former couple’s two children, 5-year-old Lahela and Noah, 3, after he “saw a few things happening in regards to Sal’s parenting or relationships”. Published By -Theguardian.com - LifeSty...
Post a Comment
Read more