Andhra Pradesh encouraging beekeeping to boost farmers' income

VIJAYAWADA: Nearly 25 per cent of honey produced by farmer producer organisations (FPOs) in Chittoor district under brand name ‘Aranya’ is procured by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD). Around 20,000 kgs of honey was produced in 2019-20, out of which 5,000 kgs were procured by the TTD.  

​Now, efforts are being made to establish more such FPOs across the state, more so in tribal areas, to double the farmers’ income.

The FPOs in Chittoor were started by the department of horticulture in coordination with the DRDA and Tata Trust in 2019-20 with the objective to provide an additional source of livelihood to women self-help groups.  As many as 2,480 beneficiaries were encouraged to take up beekeeping, and Rs 1.4 crore was provided as financial assistance to support them.

The objective, officials said, was to improve management skills of the beekeepers through training, and by establishing a replicable model of entrepreneurship development and increasing production by 25-35 per cent by pollination. 

Under the pilot project, as many as eight bee-growing FPOs were engaged in Chittoor, and measures were taken to improve production and marketing under the brand Aranya. The horticulture officials said the beekeeping and honey production are benefiting the women farmers a lot.

Citing the example of one Selvi, they said she started in the project with an initial investment of Rs 30,000. While Rs 12,000 out of the total amount was provided to her under the Mission of Integrated Development of Horticulture, the rest was loaned by the DRDA.

In just six months, Selvi, also a mango grower, saw her monthly income increase from Rs 2,500 to Rs 5,400. For 2020-21, the department earmarked Rs 1.76 crore towards maintenance of honeybee colonies, and honey extraction projects in Srikakulam, West Godavari, Guntur, Ongole, Nellore, Chittoor and Anantapur districts.

According to horticulture commissioner Chiranjeev Chowdary, after the success of the pilot project in Chittoor the department is extending the beekeeping value chain development intervention to the tribal areas of Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam and East Godavari. Collaborations with Vijayavani Charitable Foundation and Tata Trusts have been made for the same.

“Beekeeping has proved to be cost-effective, and a small investment results in manifold increase in yield and income. Cross-pollination is an essential function that enhances agriculture productivity. Hive products such as honey and beeswax become sources of additional income,” Chowdary explained. 

The department is also closely working with Krishi Vignan Kendras of YSR Horticulture University and providing capacity building to the tribal farmers in Chintapalli and other tribal areas.