Yemen's Honey Production Drops Due to Climate Change, Houthi Practices

A Yemeni beekeeper in Taiz governorate (AFP)
A Yemeni beekeeper in Taiz governorate (AFP)
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Yemen's Honey Production Drops Due to Climate Change, Houthi Practices

A Yemeni beekeeper in Taiz governorate (AFP)
A Yemeni beekeeper in Taiz governorate (AFP)

Beekeeping in Yemen is facing significant challenges that have led to a decline in honey production and the poor quality offered in the market.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned of climate change's impact on the value and quality of Yemeni honey and other practices that kill bees.

The UN organization referred to the Sidr honey, one of the most valuable honey varieties in the world.

However, bees are endangered amid changes in land use and landscape structure, intensive agricultural practices, monocultures, and the use of pesticides.

Beekeepers must pay Houthi arbitrary fees claimed as a "zakat" collection system.

The organization stressed the importance of supporting beekeepers in Yemen to enhance adaptation to climate change, improve agricultural production systems, and help beekeepers save bees.

Bees and other pollinators are unsung workhorses, as nearly 75 percent of the world's crops that produce fruits and seeds for human consumption depend on them for sustained production, yield, and quality.

It expressed concerns about the global threats to bees and the disruption to food production systems, noting the importance of honey's social and economic role in Yemen.

The FAO Representative in Yemen, Hussein Gadain, said they were encouraging adopting environment-friendly agricultural production practices that promote the restoration of agrifood systems and protect bees and other pollinators in the country.

Honey production has declined a lot during the past years, giving way to vast quantities of imported honey, which is being promoted as Yemeni honey.

A trade source in the sector controlled by the Houthi militia in Sanaa stated that the honey offered in the markets is imported and not subject to any control and that the militia does not oblige merchants to disclose the true origin or set reasonable prices.

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Houthis are concerned with collecting levies and royalties they obtain from merchants and suppliers.

The source claimed the group compensates by collecting royalties from local beekeepers, adding that the militias welcome other honey sources as an alternative.

The decline in the Yemeni honey trade began gradually since the coup after the Houthis seized several shops and companies specialized in producing and marketing Yemeni honey.

According to businessman Nazir Qadri, the group closed export outlets with neighboring countries because of the war.

Qadri explained that bee farms and shop owners were subjected to extortion, forced to pay high royalties, and obliged to gift coup leaders.

Coup leaders presented Yemeni honey as a bribe to UN officials in international organizations and diplomats, and the gifts were taken from beekeepers or merchants directly for free or at low prices, causing significant losses.

Last June, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) announced that armed conflict and climate change threaten honey production in Yemen, long known for producing some of the best in the world.

The Committee said that Yemen has long been renowned for producing some of the best honey in the world, but enormous losses have been inflicted on the industry since the outbreak of the conflict.

Successive waves of displacement to flee violence, the impact of weapon contamination on production areas, and the growing impact of climate change are pushing thousands of beekeepers into precarity, significantly reducing production.

It indicated that Yemen, like many conflict-affected countries, is disproportionately affected by climate change. The temperature rises in recent years, combined with severe alterations caused to the environment, are disturbing the bees' ecosystem, which is impacting the pollination process.

ICRC officials confirmed that active frontlines prevent beekeepers from moving around the country to graze their bees.

In addition, the presence of landmines and unexploded ordinance threatens the beekeepers, dozens of whom have reportedly been killed when trying to cross the frontlines while grazing their bees or trying to sell their products.



UN Calls for Independent Probe into Civilians Harmed Trying to Get Food in Gaza

 Palestinians carry bags filled with food and humanitarian aid provided by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed organization approved by Israel, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians carry bags filled with food and humanitarian aid provided by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed organization approved by Israel, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
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UN Calls for Independent Probe into Civilians Harmed Trying to Get Food in Gaza

 Palestinians carry bags filled with food and humanitarian aid provided by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed organization approved by Israel, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians carry bags filled with food and humanitarian aid provided by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed organization approved by Israel, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres on Tuesday slammed as "unacceptable" the deaths of Palestinians seeking food aid in Gaza, a spokesman said, calling the loss of life in the territory "unthinkable".

"The Secretary-General continues to call for an immediate and independent investigation into these events and for the perpetrators to be held to account," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters.

"We are witnessing unthinkable loss of life in Gaza (and) the secretary-general condemns the loss of lives and injuries of Palestinians seeking aid," he said. "It is unacceptable civilians are risking and in several instances losing their lives just trying to get food."

At least 27 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded by Israeli fire near a food distribution site in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, local health authorities said, in the third day of chaos and bloodshed to affect the aid operation.

A spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross told Reuters that its field hospital in Rafah received 184 casualties, adding that 19 of those were declared dead upon arrival, and eight died of their wounds shortly after.

The US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation launched its first distribution sites last week in an effort to alleviate widespread hunger amongst Gaza's war-battered population, most of whom have had to abandon their homes to flee fighting.

The Foundation's aid plan, which bypasses traditional aid groups, has come under fierce criticism from the United Nations and established charities which say it does not follow humanitarian principles.

The private group, which is endorsed by Israel, said it distributed 21 truckloads of food early on Tuesday and that the aid operation was "conducted safely and without incident within the site".

However, there have been reports of repeated killings near Rafah as crowds gather to get desperately needed supplies.

On Sunday, Palestinian and international officials reported that at least 31 people were killed and dozens more injured. On Monday, three more Palestinians were reportedly killed by Israeli fire.

The Israeli military has denied targeting civilians gathering for aid and called reports of deaths during Sunday’s distribution "fabrications" by Hamas.