Elderly Women in Yucatan Master Honey Production Amid Challenges

In Yucatan, women are at the forefront of honey production, attracting significant government investment. However, they are increasingly grappling with the impacts of climate change.

According to the Secretariat of Sustainable Development, a preliminary registry of meliponiculturists (beekeepers specializing in stingless bees) in the state identified 109 active initiatives. These were predominantly in the southern region, with women leading 86 of the projects, spread across 38 municipalities and 58 locations throughout Yucatan.

Despite initial challenges such as lack of knowledge and budget constraints, these women have managed to thrive. Teresita de Jesus Hau, a honey producer from the municipality of Maní, shared her journey. "We had to find someone to train us as we knew nothing about this beautiful work. We faced losses due to our lack of knowledge about timing and process. We had to fund our training from our own pockets and even held raffles to raise the necessary resources," she said.

Since 2014, Teresita and a group of women started with small-scale production, and now they manufacture 70 derivative products, including creams and soaps. They later joined a second group trained by SAGARPA staff, which further enhanced their knowledge. Today, they run a cooperative, sustained through volunteer support and donations.

However, they are now battling the effects of climate change and the use of harmful agricultural chemicals that are detrimental to bee colonies. Javier Quesada Euán, Head of the Tropical Beekeeping Department at UADY, expressed concern over the recent heatwave event between May and June. "The event led to significant bee colony mortality. It was an unusual and worrying event, as many colonies and their offspring were severely affected," he explained.

Data collected from beekeepers in Yucatan indicates a high incidence of mortality and its potential short and long-term effects. "We estimate that the mortality rate was around 15 percent. This figure is alarming as we have never experienced such losses before," he added. Furthermore, the unregulated use of chemicals in agriculture has also resulted in the death of thousands of bees in the Yucatan peninsula.