Climate change and environmental pollution have significantly affected honey production in the Gaza Strip in Palestine. Issam Jarada, one of the beekeepers in the region, stated that honey production has decreased in the last 15 years due to the decrease in both the number of hives and the honey yield per hive. Jarada said, “In the past, production was plentiful, income was good. For 15 years, climate change has negatively affected production. This year, we are facing a critical situation as we have a very serious loss of honey. We faced crises in April. Usually we used to prepare for the honey harvest in March, but now the beekeepers have postponed the harvest until after May,” he said.
Honey prices are also falling sharply. Issam Jarada’s son, Ibrahim Jarada, said they had to sell 1 kilogram of honey for just US$20, much lower than before.