MAKKAH: Bee industry experts from 35 countries will take part in the 14th International Honey Festival in the southern governorate of Baljurashi. The two-day event was inaugurated on Tuesday by Al-Baha Gov. Prince Hussam bin Saud bin Abdul Aziz in the presence of Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsen Al-Fadhli. The festival has been organized by the ministry’s Al-Baha branch and the Beekeeping Cooperative Association, and is being staged at the association’s headquarters for the first time. The 4th International Conference on Beekeeping and the 2nd National Beekeepers Forum will also be held as part of the festival. A total of 46 international experts will present working papers on beekeeping and all aspects of the bee industry at the conference, which is being held under the title “Good Practices In Bee Management For Sustainable Beekeeping.” Ahmed Al-Khazem, chairman of the Beekeeping Cooperative Association, said that its headquarters had been upgraded this year in preparation for the festival, with the completion of a shopping mall, residential hotel project, and a factory for honey production and packaging, as well as a training institute and museum. Festival participants include the National Center for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification, the Ministry of Human Resources, the Social Development Bank, the Saudi Food and Drug Authority, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, Saudi Aramco and Saudi Post. Conference themes include beehive management, genetic improvement, bee illnesses and pests, and bee products, Al-Khazem said. Training sessions, a honey exhibition, and displays of industry innovations will be among the highlights of the event, he added. “The festival will witness the participation of 10 government bodies and the organization of Sheikh Ali Almajdouie Award for supporting the honey industry, Sheikh Salem Al-Kassem Competition and the Beekeepers Cooperative Association Competition,” Al-Khazem said.