Zambia, FAO, and Codex Unite to Elevate Honey to Global Standards
Zambia has taken a significant step toward boosting its honey industry and aligning it with international food safety and quality standards following high-level discussions between Dr Douty Chibamba, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment, and Sarah Cahill, Secretary of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, at the Joint FAO/WHO Centre in Rome.
The meeting, held on the sidelines of the Hand-in-Hand Initiative Investment Forum 2025, explored opportunities to enhance Zambia’s honey sector through improved production practices, strengthened traceability, and alignment with global standards to support international trade.
Discussions centred on Zambia’s ongoing efforts to develop its honey industry, guided by the existing Codex Standard for Honey, which has been periodically reviewed to address safety, contaminant, and quality concerns.
Both parties acknowledged the growing global challenge of food fraud in honey markets and underscored the need for robust methodologies to detect adulteration and ensure product authenticity.
Dr Chibamba and Ms Cahill emphasised that while Codex provides technical standards and guidance, effective implementation depends on capacity-building and collaboration with FAO technical teams and development partners.
They also identified opportunities to integrate Zambia’s honey initiatives with broader FAO programmes such as “One Country, One Commodity,” aimed at strengthening agricultural value chains and market competitiveness.
A key focus of the talks was enhancing traceability systems to increase Zambia’s access to high-value export markets, including the European Union. Strengthened traceability and adherence to international quality standards were noted as vital to ensuring the credibility and competitiveness of Zambian honey globally.
Dr Chibamba reaffirmed the Zambian government’s commitment to expanding honey production, improving standards, and building strategic partnerships to enhance technical capacity and market access.
“Zambia is committed to promoting sustainable honey production while ensuring our products meet the highest international standards of quality and safety,” said Dr Chibamba. “Through collaboration with Codex and FAO, we aim to make Zambian honey a benchmark for excellence in Africa and beyond.”
