TEHRAN- As announced by a provincial official, 7,623 tons of honey was produced in Isfahan province during the past Iranian calendar year 1401 (ended on March 20).

Hamed Sedarat, an official in charge of honey bee affairs in the province’s Agriculture Department, also announced that based on the census results of the beehives of the province about 260 kilograms of other honey bee products, including royal jelly, propolis, pollen, wax and venom, were also produced in the province during the previous year.

He further announced that according to the latest census conducted last October, Isfahan province has 4,882 apiaries and 858,310 bee colonies, indicating an increasing trend compared to the past.

According to the latest census of the country's apiaries by the Agriculture Ministry, the production of honey is 136,000 tons in the country, a board member of the Iran Beekeepers Association announced.

Mohammad Fekri said that with producing 30,000 tons of honey per annum, West Azarbaijan province supplies more than 22 percent of the country's annual honey, East Azarbaijan, Fars, Ardebil, and Kermanshah provinces come next, and about 43 percent of the honey is produced in other provinces.

As stated by the chairman of the Animal Science Research Institute of Iran (ASRI), Iran ranks third in the world in the number of apiaries.

Mokhtar Mohajer also said that Iran's rank in honey production is changing and moving between the fourth and sixth place in the world.

MA