Profitability of honey production in Ogun State, Nigeria

The study was carried out in Ogun State. The study analyzed the profitability of honey production in the study area. Information was elicited from 120 respondents by simple random sampling with the aid of a well-structured questionnaire and interview schedule from where input and output data were obtained. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and budgetary techniques analysis. The result of the socio-economic variables showed that 41.7% of the respondents were within a productive age-range of 41-50 years. It further revealed that there was gender insensitivity and discrimination (between male and female) in honey production because 79.2% were males while 21.8% were female. Honey production in the study area is profitable as a beekeeper on the average realizes 120 liters of honey per production cycle and a net farm income of N131695.01. Also, a return on investment per naira was N1.56. The identified prominent problems include pests and predators, theft of hives and honey, the inadequacy of bee equipment and inadequate capital. The study, therefore, concluded that as honey production attracts the attention of a greater percentage of the populace these days because of its profitability and a viable complementary activity/quick returns.