THis is a type of honey which is consumed by the consumers

1. CHALLENGES OF EXPORTING
HONEY FROM MYANMAR
Presented
By
U Myint Than
Apiculture Resources and Business Center
Plan Bee

2. PRESENTATION IS DIVIDED IN FOUR SECTIONS;
1. A BRIEF BACKGROUND OF BEEKEEPING IN MYANMAR
2. ANALYSIS OF HONEY MARKET IN THE WORLD
3. THE CHALLENGES IN ACCESSING THE DEVELOPED MARKETS IN THE WORLD
4. HOW WE MAY NEED TO PREPARE FOR THE CHALLENGES AND TURN IT TO
OPPORTUNITIES

3. Background
 Modern beekeeping was introduced in Myanmar (then Burma) under the British colonial rule around
the 1920s. The British brought the apis mellifera bee species from UK.
 In the early 1980s – with the help of FAO and United States –The world known bee scientist, the late,
Dr. Roger Morse of Cornell University together with Dr. Zamarlicki of USA started the beekeeping
project in Myanmar. Mr. Shaike Stern from Israel was also sent to Myanmar to support the trainings in
the 1980s. The project trained dozens of government employees and fresh university graduates in
modern beekeeping. Myanmar government sent newly trained beekeepers to United States, United
Kingdom, Australia and Israel for further trainings. European bees are started introduced in Myanmar
by then.
 2012, Tag International Development together with Mashav, Israel international cooperation agency,
contacted Myanmar government and explained their intention to train the rural population in modern
techniques of beekeeping for the increase of household incomes in the target area and to create new
livelihood. Mr. Shaike Stern came to Myanmar again as an expert in the Plan Bee project.
 The government agreed the project and Livelihood and Food Security Fund (LIFT) agreed to fund it.
Then, Tag together with Apiculture, Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department as associate
partners and local NGOs Parami Development Network (PDN) and Danu Literature, Culture and
Regional Development Associations as implementation partners started the Plan Bee project in early
2013 till now.

4. Present status of beekeeping and honey production in
Myanmar
 Myanmar has 893 registered commercial beekeepers and is producing about 4500
metric tons of honey a year. Out of the total produced quantity, about 3500 metric
tons, are exported only in the region due to the economic sanctions imposed on the
country.
Many apiculture and environment experts visiting the country confirmed that they saw
a good potential for increasing the present status of beekeeping. People are
increasing their capacity for beekeeping so as to increase the number of colonies they
are keeping.
With the present situation and trend, the production of Myanmar honey would be
doubled within a decade. Myanmar beekeepers are looking forward to exporting to
the world market.

5. Beekeepers and Bee Colonies in Myanmar (2015)
Srl State/Division Reg. beekeepers No. of colonies Remarks
1 Kachin 38 4310
2 Sagaing 284 39440
3 Mandalay 284 54518
4 Naypyidaw 52 4605
5 Shan 69 9545
6 Kayah 13 460
7 Kayin 12 700
8 Bago 57 5950
9 Magwe 76 8485
10 Yangon 8 1655
Total 893 129668 (Source: DoA)

8. Product Description
۩ Specific definition of the product: According to the Codex Alimentarius (CA) from World Health
Organization, honey is defined as “the natural sweet substance, produced by honey bees from the
nectar of plants or from secretions of living parts of plants or excretions of plant sucking insects on the
living parts, which the bee collect, transform by combining with specific substances of their own,
deposit, hydrate, store and leave in the honey combs to ripen and mature.”
۞Blossom Honey or Nectar Honey; the honey which bees create from the nectars of the plants.
۞Honeydew Honey; the honey which bees create mainly from sap secreted by insects (Hemiptera)
from the living parts of the plants or secretions of living parts of the plants.
۩ HS Code of natural honey: 040900

9. TREND IN WORLDWIDE HONEY PRODUCTION

10. TRENDS IN BEEHIVES NUMBER ACROSS CONTINENTS

11. World Top Honey Importers EU(28) was the number one honey importer in 2014. They imported almost a quarter of the
available honey, with estimated value of 1.12 billion dollars. United States was the world’s second largest honey importer,
importing 16% of the market share at an estimated value of 518 million dollars. The France was third, United Kingdom
was fourth, and Japan was the fifth. Below is a list of the top ten countries importing honey in the world.
(Source: International Trade Centre, www.trademap.org) Unit: US$ 1000
Importers Imported value in 2012 Imported value in 2013 Imported value in 2014
EU(28) 871,631 1,032,995 1,121,548
USA 429,983 498742 518,636
Germany 281,732 325,387 307,610
France 93,712 113,479 152491
United Kingdom 113,777 126,115 129,186
Japan 105,373 115,956 120,157
Belgium 55,820 63,410 77,093
Saudi Arabia 51,908 61,606 66,150
Spain 48,292 53,631 60,776
Poland 35,060 48,198 53,778
Netherland 39,321 46,443 48,023
Austria 33,130 35,526 34,398

12. WORLD TOP HONEY EXPORTERS
(SOURCE: INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE, WWW.TRADEMAP.ORG) US$ 1000
Exporters
Exported value
in 2011
Exported value
in 2012
Exported
value in 2013
Exported value
in 2014
Exported value
in 2015
World 1,700,086 1,767,513 2,076,628 2,333,213
China 201,375 215,051 246,550 260,263
Argentina 223,553 215,147 212,637 204,438
New Zealand 87,089 103,892 140,174 168,191
Germany 120,716 129,527 140,444 151,120
Mexico 90,359 101,497 112,352 147,037
Viet Nam 67,141 58,131 89,966 132,974
Spain 79,184 79,843 91,483 120,428
Brazil 70,869 52,348 54,124 98,576 81,720
Ukraine 27,821 31,113 52,972 93,198
Hungary 60,117 63,501 90,467 92,066

13. Market access requirements in EU
 The right to become an exporter of animal origin products to EU When
exporting the honey to Europe, producers must comply with legally binding requirements. All
European food legislation is based on the principles of traceability, risk analysis and
precautionary measures. EU legislation prohibits the import of honey from countries outside
the ‘third country list’.
 Since most honey is used as food, EU legislation on food applies to all honey imported into
the EU. The basis for food legislation is laid down in the EU General Food Law (Regulation
(EC) 178/2002), which also defines responsibilities and requirements for food business
operators supplying food to the EU.
 Business operators such as honey processors are required by law to comply with the EU
legislation on hygiene of foodstuffs (Regulation (EC) 852/2004). The General Hygiene
legislation requires a clean production environment and personnel trained in the hygienic
handling of honey.
 EU legislation requires that products with food safety problems should be taken off the
market and consumers should be informed.

14. Market access requirements (cont.)
 The General Food Law requires EU food business operators, such as honey importers, to be
able to identify each supplier of every batch of honey.
 Directive (EC) 110/2001 sets European requirements concerning honey quality standards and
labelling.
 Regulation (EC) 470/2009, in conjunction with the annexes of Regulation (EC) 2377/90,
establishes maximum residue levels (MRLs) for the use of authorized veterinary drugs, such
as antibiotics, applied to honey bees.
 The use of certain pesticides in agriculture is leading to massive decline in bee colonies, also
known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD).
 The EU has established strict guidelines concerning foods containing GMOs. A ruling issued
by the European Court of Justice in September 2011 stipulated that honey with traces of
pollen from genetically modified crops needed special authorization and labeling, before it
could be sold in Europe.

15. ‘
According to REGULATION (EC) No 178/2002 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE
COUNCIL
Food’ shall not include:
(1) feed;
(2) live animals unless they are prepared for placing on the market for human consumption;
(3) plants prior to harvesting;
(4) medicinal products within the meaning of Council Directives 65/65/EEC (1) and 92/73/EEC (2);
(5) cosmetics within the meaning of Council Directive 76/768/EEC (3);
(6) tobacco and tobacco products within the meaning of Council Directive 89/622/EEC (4);
(7) narcotic or psychotropic substances within the meaning of the United Nations Single Convention on
Narcotic Drugs,1961, and the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances, 1971;
(8) residues and contaminants.

16. REGULATION (EC) No 852/2004 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
lays down general rules for food importers and business operators on the hygiene of foodstuffs,
taking particular account of the following principles:
(a) primary responsibility for food safety rests with the food business operator;
(b) it is necessary to ensure food safety throughout the food chain, starting with primary production;
(c) it is important, for food that cannot be stored safely at ambient temperatures, particularly frozen
food,
to maintain the cold chain;
(d) general implementation of procedures based on the HACCP principles, together with the
application
of good hygiene practice, should reinforce food business operators’ responsibility;
(e) guides to good practice are a valuable instrument to aid food business operators at all levels of
the
food chain with compliance with food hygiene rules and with the application of the HACCP
principles;
(f) it is necessary to establish microbiological criteria and temperature control requirements based
on a
scientific risk assessment;
(g) it is necessary to ensure that imported foods are of at least the same hygiene standard as food
produced in the Community, or are of an equivalent standard.

17. GOOD BEEKEEPING PRACTICE
 Who is concerned?
The large majority of beekeepers who are regarded as
primary
producers.
 What is concerned?
 Work at the apiary,
 Harvesting, transport, and packaging of Honey
 Direct selling of honey, storage.

18. Codex General Principles of Food
Hygiene
Code adopted in 1969, revised in 1979, 1985, and 1997
Definitions:
Food hygiene - all conditions and measures necessary to ensure the
safety and suitability of food at all stages of the food chain
HACCP - a system which identifies, evaluates and controls hazards
which are significant for food safety

19. GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICE (IN PROCESSING OF BEE PRODUCTS)
1. Design, construction and maintenance of buildings, facility and equipment.
 Purpose and scope
 Sources of hazards
 Mandatory requirements
 Procedures
 Records
2. Potable water
3. Cleaning and sanitation
4. Personal competency, health and hygiene
5. Control of chemicals
6. Pest control
7. Packaging materials (specification, storage and handling)

20. GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICE (IN PROCESSING OF BEE PRODUCTS) ----- CONT.
8. Receipt and processing of honey and dried pollen
 Procedures for the receipt of honey, pollen and other bee products
 Procedures for the processing of honey
 Procedures for the processing of pollen
 Traceability and inventory control
 Monitoring
 Records
9. Document control and record keeping
10. Recall
11. Operator verification and other operational requirements

21. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP)
 List hazards associated with each process step (Principle #1)
 Apply HACCP decision tree to determine CCP’s (Principle #2)
 Establish critical limits (Principle #3)
 Establish monitoring procedures (Principle #4)
 Establish deviation procedures (Principle #5)
 Establish verification procedures (Principle #6)
 Establish record keeping/documentation for principles 1 - 6 (Principle #7)

22. GHP and HACCP
Programme of GMP
Based on Codex General
Principles of Food Hygiene
(documented, verified and audited)
HACCP
systems
Prerequisite
to establishing
HACCP
programme

23. Market access requirements in USA
Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and
Response Act of 2002
(The Bioterrorism Act of 2002) became effective on December 12,
2003
FDA Requirements
 An importer of honey need to register at US FDA
 The Processing plant which the importer used need to register at US FDA

24. At the Apiary
 Name, ID card of beekeeper
 Contract of honey delivery with collector or exporter
 Registration number of beekeepers with authorized
office
 Number of colony, quantity of honey output
 List of employees
 Training and Health certificates
 Inspection records if any

25. At the Apiary -- (cont.)
 Beekeeping diary in previous months or year
 Surround environment: Water, Air, cattle sheds…
 Materials to make hive, extractor, smoker, container…and their clean
situations. (Procedure of use, clean up and maintenance)
 Procedure of extracting honey
 Supplements: Ingredients and manufacturers
 Method applying to treat bee disease and mites (Procedure of
storage at apiary)
 Transport
 Name of honey receiver and documents
 GHP is recommended

26. Processing plant
 FDA Registration No.
 Address of office and processing stations
 Internal Rules
 List of employees and assigning responsibilities
 Their certificates of training and health
 Procedures of receiving, sampling, testing, processing, hygiene, packing, delivery…
 GHP, GPP, GMP are required
 Documents on origins of raw honey, containers…

27. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION