Apiculture development in Iraq
2004
Sivaram, V.,Bangalore Univ. Post Graduate Center, Kolar-563101 (India). Dept. of Botany
The author was a FAO consultant/team leader who visited all ten governorates of Iraq (Anbar, Babylon, Baghdad, Diyala, Najaf, Ninevah [Mosul], Salah Al-Deen, Tameem and Wasit) except Kurdistan from November to December 2003, intending to study the general status of apiculture in that country, particularly the incidence of American Foulbrood (AFB) and Varroa mites in honey bee colonies. The study revealed that the incidence of Varroa is very high in most of the colonies inspected in the governorates. On the other hand, while European Foulbrood (EFB) disease is very common, American Foulbrood is found only in a few colonies in Baghdad and Ninevah (Mosul) governorates. The practice of beekeeping in Iraq involves mainly the honey bee, Apis mellifera syriaca. These bees are very gentle and easy to work with. Annual honey production is 8-10 kg/year/hive. Despite efforts of beekeepers to enhance honey, production, this was not possible because of various factors. They include the following: non-availability of required drugs for the control of bee diseases, lack of scientific information on modern management practices, difficulty in diagnosing foulbrood, poor quality of beehives and accessories, non-availability of published technical materials and others. The high incidence of bee diseases in Iraq may be due to the continuous importation of queen bees from various countries without proper checking for the disease. The Iraqi Beekeepers Association (IBA) has been providing advisory services to beekeepers on improving their living standards. The small-scale local beekeeping industries also provide beekeeping equipment and other accessories to beekeepers. This paper provides preliminary information on the present status of the beekeeping industry in Iraq.
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