Zambia deepens global partnerships to boost honey production, exports

Zambia has reaffirmed its commitment to expanding honey production, improving quality standards, and strengthening partnerships to enhance technical capacity and market access.

Ministry of Green Economy and Environment Permanent Secretary, Dr. Douty Chibamba, emphasized the importance of strengthening traceability systems and adherence to international standards to ensure that Zambia’s honey remained competitive and credible in global markets.

Chibamba said this during a high-level meeting with Sarah Cahill, Secretary of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, held at the Joint Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO) Centre in Rome, Italy.

The meeting, held on the sidelines of the Hand-in-Hand Initiative Investment Forum 2025, focused on developing Zambia’s honey sector by enhancing quality and safety standards and improving traceability to support international trade.

“The discussions highlighted Zambia’s progress in honey production, including the existence of a Codex standard for honey that has undergone periodic revisions to address safety, contaminant, and quality concerns,” read the statement.

The meeting also discussed global challenges in the honey industry, particularly food fraud, and underscored the need for robust methodologies to distinguish authentic honey from adulterated products.

Chibamba and Cahill explored the role of Codex standards in strengthening the honey value chain, noting that while the Codex Secretariat provided standards and technical guidance, effective implementation and capacity building require collaboration with FAO technical teams and other partners.

The two sides identified opportunities to align Zambia’s honey sector initiatives with broader FAO programmes, including technical support on food safety, quality assurance, and possible integration into initiatives such as “One Country, One Commodity.”

The discussions also emphasized the importance of developing traceability systems to improve market access, particularly in high-value export destinations such as the European Union.

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