Statistical Overview of the Canadian Honey and Bee Industry, 2023

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Overview

Beekeeping is an important agricultural industry in Canada, producing honey and other hive products, and delivering valuable pollination services to farmers of orchard fruits, many berries, vegetables, forage, and the production of hybrid canola seed. In 2021, AAFC estimated that the total annual economic contribution of honey bee pollination through direct additional harvest value was about $3.18 billion. When the estimated contribution of honey bee pollination to the production of hybrid canola seed is added, the total estimated contribution rises to $7 billion per year.

In the 2023 season the industry was continuing to rebuild from the 2022 season's higher than usual level of overwinter colony losses, which required beekeepers to rebuild honey bee colony populations through the spring and summer. (For more details on provincial and national over winter loss rates please refer to the Canadian Association of Provincial Apiculturists (CAPA) reports at Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists.)

The national total number of hives increased in 2023 to 794,341, 3.6% more than the previous year, and 0.7% higher than the average of the previous four years. Honey production in Canada in 2023, by volume, increased by 23.4% from a year earlier to 91.8 million pounds. With higher volumes and modestly lower prices for honey the total value of the national harvest rose by 8.2% over the previous year to $277 million. The total value of the 2023 harvest is 22% higher than the average of the previous four years ($226 million).

While beekeepers operate in all provinces, the majority (64%) of Canadian honey bee colonies were kept in the Prairie provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta) where long summer days and large areas of good forage crops for bees make it possible for beekeepers in those provinces to produce honey well in surplus to provincial demand. In contrast, the majority (59%) of beekeepers (anyone with one or more honey bee colonies) operate in Ontario and British Columbia, managing 23% of the national total of colonies. The three Prairie Provinces produced 81% of the total national honey production in 2023, totaling 74,222 thousand pounds (out of a total national production of 91,807 thousand pounds).

This regional concentration of honey production is echoed in the regional balance of honey exports. The Prairie Provinces were responsible for 73% of 2023 export shipments of honey by value, with the remainder (27%) of Canadian honey exports left Canada from Ontario and Quebec. In 2023, the United States received 48.3% (3,383 MT) of total annual honey exports and Japan was the destination for 46.3% (3,244 MT).

Canadian beekeepers import queen bees and package bees (a few pounds of worker bees and a mated queen) each spring to supplement domestic supplies of bees. These imported bees are used to rapidly replace over-winter queen and hive losses and to grow beekeeping operations over the season. Queens can be imported from certain countries and regions which have been deemed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) as safe and that bees from these places do not pose any unacceptable risk to Canada. Beekeepers imported 343,125 queens in 2023; most came from California and Hawaii (75.9%), with contributions from New Zealand (6.6%), Italy (5.6%), Australia (5.2%), Chile (3.4%), and Ukraine (3.1%). In 2023 package bees were imported from a short list of approved sources: Australia, New Zealand, Italy and Chile. Beekeepers imported a total of 69,364 kgs of package bees; 22.3% more than the previous year and 230% of the average quantity of packages received in each of the previous four years. 38% (26,485 kgs) of the total number of imported packages arrived from New Zealand, 32% (22,435 kgs) from Italy, 23% (16,071 kgs) from New Zealand, and 6% (4,373 kgs) from Chile.

1. Production

1.1 Number of beekeepers^{Table note 1} by province

Number of beekeepers by province
	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Prince Edward Island	50	30	30	30	30	0.2%
Nova Scotia	690	788	886	946	912	6.0%
New Brunswick	415	450	495	513	558	3.7%
Quebec	440	485	547	495	533	3.5%
Ontario	2,506	2,856	3,227	3,781	3,980	26.3%
Manitoba	905	914	926	905	965	6.4%
Saskatchewan	1,101	1,050	1,226	1,267	1,308	8.6%
Alberta	1,653	1,621	1,754	1,817	1,950	12.9%
British Columbia	2,763	3,800	4,300	4,600	4,911	32.4%
Canada^{Table note 2}	10,523	11,994	13,391	14,354	15,147	100.0%
Notes: Table 1 note [1] Beekeeper numbers may include pollinators that may not extract honey. Return to table 1 note [1] referrer Table 1 note [2] Newfoundland and Labrador is excluded since the province has limited beekeeping. Return to table 1 note [2] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0353-01 Production and value of honey

1.2. Number of colonies^{Table note 1} by province

Number of colonies by province
	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Prince Edward Island	3,591	4,250	3,436	4,472	3,421	0.4%
Nova Scotia	25,716	26,282	27,751	26,531	26,028	3.3%
New Brunswick	4,120	8,456	9,250	5,892	6,568	0.8%
Quebec	66,700	67,173	74,979	57,340	65,696	8.3%
Ontario	90,675	101,989	102,328	102,562	101,161	12.7%
Manitoba	114,668	116,697	114,837	103,934	105,000	13.2%
Saskatchewan	115,000	100,000	115,000	102,000	99,000	12.5%
Alberta	314,800	283,000	324,500	300,450	302,900	38.1%
British Columbia	55,781	56,769	62,181	63,693	84,567	10.6%
Canada^{Table note 2}	791,051	764,616	834,262	766,874	794,341	100.0%
Notes: Table 1.2 note [1] Colony numbers may include pollinators that may not extract honey. Return to table 1.2 note [1] referrer Table 1.2 note [2] Newfoundland and Labrador is excluded since the province has limited beekeeping. Return to table 1.2 note [2] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0353-01 Production and value of honey

1.3. Number of beekeepers and number of colonies by province

Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0353-01 Production and value of honey

Description of the image above.

Number of beekeepers and number of colonies by province in 2023

Province	Number of beekeepers 2023	Number of colonies 2023
Prince Edward Island	30	3,421
Nova Scotia	912	26,028
New Brunswick	558	6,568
Quebec	533	65,696
Ontario	3,980	101,161
Manitoba	965	105,000
Saskatchewan	1,308	99,000
Alberta	1,950	302,900
British Columbia	4,911	84,567

1.4. Total honey production^{Table note 1} by province – thousands of pounds

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Prince Edward Island	181	159	192	213	85	0.1%
Nova Scotia	390	550	530	544	485	0.5%
New Brunswick	218	346	406	238	271	0.3%
Quebec	3,963	2,996	4,039	3,267	3,476	3.8%
Ontario	7,963	8,535	6,402	7,591	7,069	7.7%
Manitoba	18,350	20,300	18,490	15,490	17,220	18.8%
Saskatchewan	20,240	15,700	19,665	13,464	20,048	21.8%
Alberta	31,418	30,735	34,061	29,755	36,954	40.3%
British Columbia	3,907	3,843	4,346	3,851	6,199	6.8%
Canada^{Table note 2}	86,630	83,165	88,132	74,413	91,807	100.0%
Notes: Table 1.4 note [1] Production excludes inventory. Return to table 1.4 note [1] referrer Table 1.4 note [2] Newfoundland and Labrador is excluded since the province has limited beekeeping. Return to table 1.4 note [2] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0353-01 Production and value of honey

1.5. Production value^{Table note 1} of honey by province – thousands of Canadian dollars

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Prince Edward Island	423	332	462	533	277	0.1%
Nova Scotia	1,073	2,133	1,549	1,616	1,889	0.7%
New Brunswick	666	1,399	1,809	1,248	1,226	0.4%
Quebec	15,408	8,136	15,168	13,092	16,699	6.0%
Ontario	29,437	32,007	30,088	37,195	29,690	10.7%
Manitoba	32,997	43,435	52,868	50,752	48,186	17.4%
Saskatchewan	32,384	31,400	58,995	41,892	45,157	16.3%
Alberta	58,188	66,846	93,216	92,679	105,580	38.1%
British Columbia	11,040	13,780	14,248	17,159	28,515	10.3%
Canada^{Table note 2}	181,615	199,468	268,403	256,165	277,219	100.0%
Notes: Table 1.5 note [1] Value excludes inventory sales except for in Quebec. Return to table 1.5 note [1] referrer Table 1.5 note [2] Newfoundland and Labrador is excluded since the province has limited beekeeping. Return to table 1.5 note [2] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0353-01 Production and value of honey

2. Trade

2.1. Trade balance

2.1.1. Canada's honey trade balance – thousands of Canadian dollars

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
Export	53,827	47,371	44,723	72,201	46,300
Import	45,403	42,576	47,481	73,936	57,388
Trade Balance (Exports − Imports)	$8,424	$4,795	−$2,758	−$1,735	−$11,088
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.2. Exports

2.2.1. Canada's honey exports by province^{Table note 1} — by value (thousands of Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Prince Edward Island	0	2	0	41	0	0.0%
Nova Scotia	60	113	2	13	3	0.0%
New Brunswick	0	0	0	135	0	0.0%
Quebec	4,098	6,200	5,374	5,734	5,973	12.9%
Ontario	5,722	2,527	6,217	7,227	6,484	14.0%
Manitoba	11,943	16,407	17,270	34,166	17,147	37.0%
Saskatchewan	11,097	7,230	3,178	6,667	4,002	8.6%
Alberta	19,735	14,387	12,080	18,036	12,463	26.9%
British Columbia	1,172	506	602	182	228	0.5%
Canada	53,827	47,371	44,723	72,201	46,300	100.0%
Notes: Table 2.2.1 note [1] Exports may include honey not produced in that province. Return to table 2.2.1 note [1] referrer 0: True zero or a value rounded to zero. Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.2.2. Canada's honey exports by province^{Table note 1} — by volume (metric tonnes)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Prince Edward Island	0	1	0	6	0	0.0%
Nova Scotia	7	20	0	2	1	0.0%
New Brunswick	0	0	0	19	0	0.0%
Quebec	611	965	744	751	1,049	15.0%
Ontario	1,006	398	946	987	947	13.5%
Manitoba	2,959	3,358	2,941	5,247	2,664	38.0%
Saskatchewan	2,735	1,630	599	956	596	8.5%
Alberta	4,358	2,852	2,020	2,663	1,720	24.5%
British Columbia	171	85	98	31	30	0.4%
Canada	11,847	9,309	7,349	10,664	7,006	100.0%
Notes: Table 2.2.2 note [1] Exports may include honey not produced in that province. Return to table 2.2.2 note [1] referrer 0: True zero or a value rounded to zero. Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.2.3. Canada's top honey export destinations — by value (thousands of Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
United States	33,615	19,363	17,574	38,212	23,199	50.1%
Japan	17,884	23,735	25,096	30,710	20,899	45.1%
South Korea	503	671	823	1,062	1,567	3.4%
China	1,403	1,648	458	1,267	385	0.8%
Barbados	62	45	27	41	75	0.2%
Lebanon	25	22	24	14	68	0.1%
United Arab Emirates	0	22	34	39	22	0.0%
Viet-Nam	15	15	0	10	21	0.0%
Taiwan	48	54	23	46	19	0.0%
Kuwait	5	60	42	28	15	0.0%
Others	266	1,738	622	771	31	0.1%
Total	53,827	47,371	44,723	72,201	46,300	100.0%
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.2.4. Canada's top honey export destinations — by volume (metric tonnes)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
United States	7,872	4,143	2,992	5,774	3,383	48.3%
Japan	3,575	4,362	4,010	4,384	3,244	46.3%
South Korea	128	135	141	146	264	3.8%
China	209	295	82	190	71	1.0%
Barbados	11	9	5	7	14	0.2%
Lebanon	3	3	3	2	12	0.2%
United Arab Emirates	0	4	5	8	4	0.1%
Viet-Nam	2	3	0	2	4	0.1%
Taiwan	9	9	4	8	3	0.0%
Kuwait	1	11	8	5	3	0.0%
Others	37	335	100	139	5	0.1%
Total	11,847	9,309	7,349	10,664	7,006	100.0%
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3. Imports

2.3.1. Canada's honey imports by province — by value (thousands of Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Nova Scotia	73	3	2	94	675	1.2%
New Brunswick	7	0	22	28	0	0.0%
Quebec	10,817	11,302	15,249	23,111	13,776	24.0%
Ontario	27,543	24,404	24,216	39,767	29,429	51.3%
Manitoba	44	28	378	516	433	0.8%
Saskatchewan	69	1	550	153	525	0.9%
Alberta	737	825	1,019	1,819	4,568	8.0%
British Columbia	6,112	6,013	6,045	8,447	7,983	13.9%
Canada	45,403	42,576	47,481	73,936	57,388	100.0%
Note: 0: True zero or a value rounded to zero. Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.2. Canada's honey imports by province — by volume (metric tons)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Nova Scotia	22	1	0	20	99	1.3%
New Brunswick	0	0	4	7	0	0.0%
Quebec	2,896	3,080	3,460	4,905	2,899	39.2%
Ontario	3,151	3,660	4,070	4,446	2,912	39.3%
Manitoba	5	2	63	97	91	1.2%
Saskatchewan	2	0	100	35	126	1.7%
Alberta	25	26	121	224	779	10.5%
British Columbia	412	376	383	831	500	6.8%
Canada	6,513	7,144	8,200	10,566	7,405	100.0%
Note: 0: True zero or a value rounded to zero. Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.3. Canada's top sources of honey imports — by value (thousands of Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
New Zealand	17,470	14,122	12,918	20,123	20,224	35.2%
Brazil	6,890	5,864	11,650	19,261	10,982	19.1%
United States	2,539	4,931	3,520	7,522	5,545	9.7%
Australia	3,110	2,719	2,594	5,354	3,737	6.5%
Thailand	3,476	2,450	1,955	2,338	2,495	4.3%
India	3,397	3,342	3,391	4,695	2,000	3.5%
Greece	1,282	1,439	1,628	1,780	1,970	3.4%
Saudi Arabia	1,297	990	1,373	1,774	1,728	3.0%
Spain	2,606	2,013	3,162	2,477	1,585	2.8%
Viet-Nam	276	1,356	955	1,335	1,134	2.0%
Others	3,058	3,351	4,335	7,277	5,987	10.4%
Total	45,403	42,576	47,481	73,936	57,388	100.0%
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.4. Canada's top sources of honey imports — by volume (metric tons)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
Brazil	1,811	1,749	2,509	3,858	2,379	32.1%
United States	575	1,148	807	1,303	859	11.6%
Thailand	891	700	756	579	640	8.6%
India	1,092	1,079	1,118	981	550	7.4%
Viet-Nam	129	544	438	626	507	6.8%
New Zealand	412	331	285	427	410	5.5%
Spain	529	416	795	537	339	4.6%
Greece	142	255	338	233	313	4.2%
Australia	279	223	219	467	261	3.5%
Saudi Arabia	130	91	174	225	158	2.1%
Others	523	607	760	1,330	988	13.3%
Total	6,513	7,144	8,200	10,566	7,405	100.0%
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.5. Canada's sources of package honey bee^{Table note 1} imports — by value (Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
New Zealand	1,988,220	848,695	0	981,539	4,256,389	49.6%
Italy	0	0	0	0	2,075,939	24.2%
Australia	1,255,269	187,448	736,172	2,020,863	1,885,139	22.0%
Chile	167,180	86,400	0	199,800	357,426	4.2%
Others	8	14	0	5,343	0	0.0%
Total	3,410,677	1,122,557	736,172	3,207,545	8,574,893	100.0%
Note: Table 2.3.5 note [1] Does not include queen bees and live bees that are not honey bees. Return to table 2.3.5 note [1] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.6. Canada's sources of package honey bee^{Table note 1} imports — by volume (kilograms)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
New Zealand	25,308	10,804	0	12,808	26,485	38.2%
Italy	0	0	0	0	22,435	32.3%
Australia	13,462	1,926	8,661	40,219	16,071	23.2%
Chile	2,569	1,016	0	3,649	4,373	6.3%
Others	0	0	0	63	0	0.0%
Total	41,339	13,746	8,661	56,739	69,364	100.0%
Note: Table 2.3.6 note [1] Does not include queen bees and live bees that are not honey bees. Return to table 2.3.6 note [1] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.7. Canada's sources of queen bee imports — by value (Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
United States	7,177,805	7,313,155	7,327,062	9,275,434	10,267,637	77.9%
New Zealand	103,034	318,928	254,707	1,706,163	1,274,520	9.7%
Italy	0	136,325	471,134	533,173	586,453	4.5%
Australia	191,143	106,147	179,022	191,720	429,301	3.3%
Chile	504,080	143,554	177,519	435,838	321,786	2.4%
Ukraine	0	727	110,927	361,059	276,613	2.1%
Others	0	21,274	6,424	33,883	18,667	0.1%
Total	7,976,062	8,040,110	8,526,795	12,537,270	13,174,977	100.0%
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

2.3.8. Canada's sources of queen bee imports — by quantity (number)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
United States	208,530	193,794	220,403	255,557	260,570	75.9%
New Zealand	2,843	8,721	5,452	13,122	22,629	6.6%
Italy	0	4,089	17,170	18,797	19,202	5.6%
Australia	7,837	3,023	7,302	7,294	17,861	5.2%
Chile	16,718	3,625	7,554	12,676	11,588	3.4%
Ukraine	0	19	3,908	14,159	10,683	3.1%
Others	0	672	224	1,350	592	0.2%
Total	235,928	213,943	262,013	322,955	343,125	100.0%
Source: Statistics Canada. (CATSNET, February 2024)

3. Consumption

3.1. Honey available^{Table note 1} for consumption in Canada – kilograms per person

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
Honey^{Table note 2}	0.95	0.98	1.12	0.90	1.09
Notes: Table 3.1 note [1] Food available per person is calculated by dividing the domestic disappearance by the Canadian population as of July 1st of the reference year, at the retail level. Domestic disappearance represents the total food available for human consumption from the Canadian food supply chain. Total Supply = Beginning stocks + Production + Imports Domestic Disappearance = Total supply − Exports − Manufacturing − Waste − Ending stocks Return to table 3.1 note [1] referrer Table 3.1 note [2] Does not adjust for losses, such as waste and/or spoilage in stores, households, private institutions or restaurants or losses during preparation. Return to table 3.1 note [2] referrer Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0054-01 Food available in Canada

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Honey^{Table note 2}

0.95

0.98

1.12

0.90

1.09

Notes:

Table 3.1 note [1]

Food available per person is calculated by dividing the domestic disappearance by the Canadian population as of July 1st of the reference year, at the retail level.
Domestic disappearance represents the total food available for human consumption from the Canadian food supply chain.
Total Supply = Beginning stocks + Production + Imports
Domestic Disappearance = Total supply − Exports − Manufacturing − Waste − Ending stocks

Return to table 3.1 note [1] referrer

Table 3.1 note [2]

Does not adjust for losses, such as waste and/or spoilage in stores, households, private institutions or restaurants or losses during preparation.

Return to table 3.1 note [2] referrer

Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0054-01 Food available in Canada

4. World data

4.1 World trade data

4.1.1. Top exporters of honey worldwide — by value (thousands of Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
China	311,714	340,817	326,422	360,590	343,268	12.5%
New Zealand	304,314	439,327	409,760	347,062	327,192	11.9%
Argentina	194,508	230,082	274,924	320,615	247,459	9.0%
India	134,046	111,235	170,838	298,386	209,988	7.7%
Spain	117,712	150,682	161,366	156,199	155,901	5.7%
Germany	176,548	201,025	186,364	159,593	153,127	5.6%
Ukraine	134,398	185,340	180,765	177,849	134,816	4.9%
Brazil	90,693	132,113	204,008	178,882	115,168	4.2%
Belgium	86,204	101,113	104,546	123,172	104,895	3.8%
Mexico	90,040	91,148	155,127	176,377	88,067	3.2%
Hungary	107,558	119,692	118,353	102,490	84,538	3.1%
Poland	57,868	83,525	79,129	68,476	57,556	2.1%
Australia	44,369	49,901	45,847	50,503	51,049	1.9%
Romania	56,262	65,794	73,446	67,801	50,671	1.8%
Bulgaria	53,611	53,331	59,477	55,752	47,864	1.7%
Viet-Nam	65,013	84,677	97,669	70,928	47,498	1.7%
Canada	53,827	47,371	44,723	72,201	46,300	1.7%
Türkiye	32,850	35,080	39,126	60,283	43,106	1.6%
France	40,046	38,865	43,159	47,127	41,290	1.5%
Greece	19,548	28,999	38,389	41,275	37,434	1.4%
Others	395,698	435,245	502,394	474,861	353,059	12.9%
Total	2,566,827	3,025,362	3,315,832	3,410,422	2,740,246	100.0%
Source: Global Trade Tracker (February 2024)

4.1.2. Top exporters of honey worldwide — by volume (metric tons)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
China	120,845	132,469	145,886	156,002	152,636	22.7%
India	65,351	54,834	70,514	86,183	88,071	13.1%
Argentina	65,242	71,564	65,720	73,001	75,587	11.2%
Ukraine	55,769	80,872	57,590	48,021	54,714	8.1%
Brazil	30,039	45,728	47,190	36,886	28,555	4.2%
Spain	22,528	28,263	28,442	28,317	27,762	4.1%
Belgium	19,328	22,454	25,605	32,393	25,576	3.8%
Mexico	26,901	27,485	33,579	34,633	21,530	3.2%
Viet-Nam	39,003	52,162	50,655	29,112	20,949	3.1%
Germany	25,320	29,742	29,758	20,948	18,018	2.7%
Poland	16,837	24,691	19,277	15,036	13,982	2.1%
Hungary	19,389	19,629	17,662	14,881	13,537	2.0%
New Zealand	9,455	14,236	13,822	11,781	11,198	1.7%
Thailand	7,908	7,672	10,315	10,967	10,910	1.6%
Romania	10,497	13,185	11,941	12,127	10,273	1.5%
Bulgaria	12,950	12,834	12,137	12,739	10,035	1.5%
Türkiye	5,548	6,038	9,994	17,248	9,386	1.4%
Portugal	6,112	7,442	9,635	10,999	8,853	1.3%
Uruguay	7,904	15,766	10,598	9,948	7,520	1.1%
Canada	11,847	9,309	7,349	10,664	7,006	1.0%
Others	71,137	76,091	88,002	76,327	57,757	8.6%
Total	649,910	752,466	765,671	748,213	673,855	100.0%
Source: Global Trade Tracker (February 2024)

4.1.3. Top importers of honey worldwide — by value (thousands of Canadian dollars)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
United States	553,350	592,357	835,747	1,036,942	789,159	27.4%
Germany	338,773	373,687	395,242	395,544	308,605	10.7%
Japan	191,607	233,619	212,824	217,645	195,273	6.8%
France	157,936	173,943	151,996	183,367	156,236	5.4%
United Kingdom	145,564	157,945	164,230	165,168	150,765	5.2%
Belgium	85,360	94,983	106,306	133,659	115,660	4.0%
Italy	105,873	108,676	128,188	132,356	106,648	3.7%
Spain	77,001	88,430	104,310	122,042	92,013	3.2%
China	112,309	119,270	131,999	92,823	84,959	2.9%
Saudi Arabia	99,935	140,765	108,202	109,405	82,470	2.9%
Poland	84,143	105,908	114,464	93,193	75,222	2.6%
Netherlands	70,282	75,328	95,232	87,374	68,293	2.4%
Switzerland	47,995	50,582	54,470	59,759	59,387	2.1%
Canada	45,403	42,576	47,481	73,936	57,388	2.0%
Australia	48,231	54,748	44,514	53,045	53,158	1.8%
Austria	33,708	33,657	35,924	37,716	31,785	1.1%
Portugal	20,889	22,899	26,920	39,885	29,559	1.0%
Ireland	24,831	29,816	19,384	23,159	27,322	0.9%
Singapore	28,550	30,993	30,947	31,882	26,178	0.9%
Sweden	31,286	29,263	24,286	27,789	25,871	0.9%
Others	302,142	355,034	451,853	440,395	346,411	12.0%
Total	2,605,168	2,914,479	3,284,519	3,557,084	2,882,362	100.0%
Source: Global Trade Tracker (February 2024)

4.1.4. Top importers of honey worldwide — by volume (metric tons)

	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2023 % Share
United States	178,948	196,531	220,085	205,677	199,296	29.6%
Germany	82,203	90,136	78,702	75,442	64,427	9.6%
United Kingdom	48,537	52,016	45,853	51,428	50,922	7.6%
Japan	44,788	49,348	47,132	47,276	41,924	6.2%
Belgium	24,847	28,089	31,596	39,747	36,864	5.5%
Spain	26,547	31,690	31,628	37,568	31,380	4.7%
France	32,842	34,913	29,348	35,538	31,260	4.6%
Poland	29,802	37,343	37,594	31,769	27,004	4.0%
Italy	23,580	21,041	24,116	24,770	22,402	3.3%
Netherlands	15,115	13,584	17,711	17,403	14,589	2.2%
Saudi Arabia	18,512	23,529	20,856	21,271	14,251	2.1%
Portugal	7,553	8,707	9,463	13,594	10,445	1.6%
Australia	4,747	7,991	7,893	7,864	8,774	1.3%
Greece	8,576	8,596	7,822	9,735	8,612	1.3%
Ireland	6,540	7,461	4,535	6,755	8,498	1.3%
Switzerland	8,240	8,192	8,235	8,615	8,207	1.2%
Canada	6,513	7,144	8,200	10,566	7,405	1.1%
Austria	6,619	6,899	6,762	6,605	5,630	0.8%
Romania	2,373	5,906	5,226	5,310	4,929	0.7%
South Africa	5,249	6,138	6,843	2,628	4,654	0.7%
Others	64,996	74,613	93,090	94,167	71,298	10.6%
Total	647,127	719,867	742,690	753,728	672,771	100.0%
Source: Global Trade Tracker (February 2024)

4.2 World production

4.2.1. Top producers of honey worldwide^{Table note 1} — by volume (metric tons)

	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2022 % Share
China	446,879	444,054	458,100	472,700	461,900	27.6%
Türkiye	107,920	109,330	104,077	96,344	118,297	7.1%
Iran	73,286	73,645	74,887	77,484	79,535	4.7%
India	65,267	67,606	69,783	74,000	74,204	4.4%
Argentina	79,468	79,140	72,183	70,715	70,437	4.2%
Ukraine	71,279	69,937	68,028	68,558	63,079	3.8%
Russia	65,006	63,526	66,368	64,533	67,014	4.0%
Mexico	64,253	61,986	54,165	62,079	64,320	3.8%
United States	69,857	71,179	66,948	57,490	56,849	3.4%
Brazil	42,268	45,801	52,493	55,679	60,966	3.6%
Canada	43,089	39,295	37,723	39,976	33,745	2.0%
Tanzania	30,659	31,218	31,362	31,617	31,345	1.9%
Romania	29,162	25,269	30,714	30,831	29,760	1.8%
South Korea	27,422	29,573	29,168	29,560	29,951	1.8%
Angola	23,459	23,463	23,437	23,447	23,457	1.4%
Others	564,470	510,806	474,891	440,999	410,289	24.5%
Total	1,803,743	1,745,829	1,714,328	1,696,012	1,675,149	100.0%
Note: Table 4.2.1 note [1] FAO production data for the year 2023 was not yet available at the time of writing this report. Return to table 4.2.1 note [1] referrer Source: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations \| © FAO Statistics Division 2024

5. Key Resources

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Statistics Division
Global Trade Tracker
Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0353-01 Production and value of honey
Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0054-01 Food available in Canada
Statistics Canada. CATSNET

Import and export data is based on the following Harmonized System Codes (H.S. Codes):

Honey for import: 0409000010; 0409000021; 0409000022; 0409000023; 0409000024; 0409000025; 0409000026; 0409000029; 0409000090
Honey for export: 04090000
Honey Bees for import: 0106410010; 0106410011; 0106410012; 0106900011; 0106900012
Queen Bees for imports: 0106410020