Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare on Thursday said that the country's honey output will climb to 1.25 lakh metric tonnes in 2020-21, up from 76,150 metric tonnes in 2013-14, due to the combined efforts of beekeepers and the government.
"At the same time, with the cooperation of beekeeping stakeholders, honey exports in 2020-21 climbed from 28,000 metric tonnes in 2013-14 to almost 60,000 metric tonnes," Tomar said after virtually inaugurating the Kisan Bhawan and Beekeeper Conference at Nagaland's Central Institute of Horticulture.
The Central Institute of Horticulture, Nagaland, was established under the Central Sector Scheme to serve the needs of small and marginal farmers in the Northeastern area who are interested in horticulture.
Tomar expressed the belief that state governments will take advantage of all available resources to ensure that beekeepers receive fair prices for their goods, adding, "We should all share the same aim that small farmers should obtain the best price for their products.
The Central administration, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has made it a priority to improve the lives of small and medium farmers."
Tomar described beekeeping as an auxiliary field for farmers to increase their income, and said the Honey Mission was launched to usher in a sweet revolution, with the Central government investing Rs.500 crore.
The provision was created as part of the campaign 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat.' Honey-producing farmers' FPOs are being formed as part of the Indian government's ambition to build 10,000 new farmer producer organisations (FPOs).
"Labs have been established in various locations around the country to properly test honey, and processing facilities are also being expanded," the minister stated.
At the program's venue, an exhibition of farmer's goods was held. Farmers were also given little kits to use for new farming experiments.
