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Harvesting hope: Empowering farmer communities across Nepali mountains

21.05.2024

Yanuka Gharti Magar's journey to sweet success, building a strong community along the way, is as rich and rewarding as the Chiuri honey she harvests. The road to building her honey business was not always easy. Growing up in rural Nepal's Rapti Rural Municipality of Lumbini Province, Yanuka dreamt of pursuing an education, but grew up collecting fodder grass and firewood. After enduring many hardships, Yanuka found hope in hives.

Starting with just two beehives, Yanuka began trading honey in her village and attended a beekeeping training provided by the Government of Nepal. She then formed a women's beekeeping group and connected with Airawati Multipurpose Small Farmers Cooperative.

Membership in the cooperative allowed Yanuka to attend more advanced trainings on honey production, processing and storage which improved her skills and helped increase her honey production by three times. These beekeeping trainings empowered her with the knowledge needed to transform her original two beehives into a thriving enterprise.

Membership in the cooperative allowed Yanuka to attend more advanced trainings on honey production, processing and storage which improved her skills and helped increase her honey production by three times. These beekeeping trainings empowered her with the knowledge needed to transform her original two beehives into a thriving enterprise.

At the heart of Yanuka’s success lies Chiuri honey, a golden elixir highly valued in the community for its medicinal, religious and cultural properties. Sourced exclusively from bees that feed only on the nectar and pollen of the Chiuri tree, native to Nepalese mountain areas, the honey has a rich taste and sweet aroma.

The inspiring story of success from Yanuka and Chiuri honey can be seen across the work of Organic World and Fair Future (OWF). OWF, a long-standing member of the Mountain Partnership, is a private eco-social company that works to improve market access for organic smallholder farmers, such as Yanuka. 

To support producers, OWF provides various training options and access to new markets, offering coordination efforts among stakeholders and value chain development toward efficiency, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability.

Marketing is the core of OWF’s work. OWF targets savvy consumers that value the benefits of organic heritage foods. These consumers appreciate local, natural products that protect the environment and promote good health.

Among OWF’s products, Jumla Marshy Rice is another example of preserving culturally significant crops. For over 1 300 years, Jumla Marshy Rice has been cultivated along the banks of the Tila River in Jumla, a mountainous district of northwest Nepal. This hardy grain is naturally tolerant to the cold temperatures of the Himalayas and is grown at elevations between 2 400 and 3 050 metres above sea level, higher than any other rice in the world.

Only traditional methods are used to produce and process this precious rice. Believed to provide the energy necessary for long hours of work in cold climates, it is traditionally prepared for two of the most important Nepalese festivals, “Dashain” and “Tihar”, as an offering to the gods and goddesses.

Collaborations between the Mountain Partnership Product (MPP) Initiative and OWF help bring products such as Jumla Marshy Rice, Jumla Mixed Beans, Himali Black Lentils and Chiuri Honey to a broader consumer base while supporting small farmers.

MPP narrative labels for these unique Nepalese products bring producer stories such as Yanuka’s to consumers.

Having the MPP narrative label helps Yanuka’s Chiuri honey to be recognized as an asset of quality, purity and originality. Yanuka reports that the narrative label and OWF’s support has improved the value and demand of Chiuri honey, with a 30 percent increase in the honey’s price between 2019 and 2023, and she sells it with pride. 

Photo by Umesh Lama