Indigenous-led ecological restoration research could double State’s honey industry to $100million

An Indigenous Australian led ecological restoration research project in the Wheatbelt could see WA’s honey industry boom and unlock export markets, doubling to $100 million in five years. With WA home to more unique species than 98 per cent of other countries, researchers believe the State has a “special opportunity” to develop highly sought-after wild honey products by planting native species back on to degraded land. It is one of the many benefits anticipated to come from a WA-based project embedding Indigenous culture at the core of ecological restoration, led by Noongar Professor Stephen van Leeuwen, of Curtin University. The five-year project — Healing Country — will see degraded and unproductive land within the Indigenous Land Estate, which was previously pastoral or cropped, restored through biodiverse planting of native species. As part of the project, a training centre facilitating Indigenous youth to attain TAFE-like qualifications in horticulture and land management and provide pathways into university will be established. The centre will also support Indigenous-owned and operated businesses to undertake the project work, improving the viability of Country and creating a sustainable restoration economy. “I’m passionate about providing the opportunity to build people’s capacities through better education pathways,” Professor van Leeuwen said. And modelling suggests it could have a huge benefit to the honey industry. Science co-lead Professor Kingsley Dixon, also from Curtin University, said WA honey had some of the highest pharmaceutical activity on the planet, with species including red gums and jarrahs having “exceptional”, sought-after properties. “We could have a $100 million honey industry based on restoring degraded Wheatbelt land back to productive bush using ‘smart native plantings’ to optimise honey production,” he said. “Many of our honeys have higher medicinal properties than Manuka, which is good for wounds, sore throats and high in antimicrobials and we’ve totally undersold that. Our WA wildflower species are simply remarkable to grow and diversify honey sources on restored land. While he said the Chinese and Japanese market had an “insatiable appetite” for WA honey, supply was needed to feed the demand and tap those channels. “They love honeys that come from clean, green areas and WA is one of the only areas like that free of verroa mite and other hive diseases,” Professor Dixon said. “Currently a honey producer will get about $6/kg and they can sell everything as it’s in undersupply ... but what if we said China was willing to pay $20/kg for WA honey with high pharmaceuticals. All of a sudden, though, wheat and sheep look OK, honey looks pretty good.” Led by an Indigenous steering committee, advised by a circle of elders, Professor van Leeuwen said they would work with land-holders such as the Noongar Land Enterprise Group to improve the health and wellbeing of both country and communities, while supporting Indigenous commercial enterprises. He said it could lead to opportunities for communities to tap into other industries including the boutique food market by planting saline species such as Old Man Saltbush, the leaves of which were used in salads, while the seeds were used in seasonings, or ground to be used in dampers. Professor van Leeuwen said Noongar Land Enterprise Group had about 20,000ha in the Wheatbelt, run mostly as traditional wheat, sheep and cropping farms, but some of that land was degraded. “If we could restore some of that to natural bushland, there’d be a significant return on investment for communities for a long time,” he said. It is also anticipated to support a carbon economy projected to reach $274 per tonne of CO2 by 2060. It is a collaborative endeavour, with researchers from a number of WA universities involved, as well as several industry partners, including Gondwana Link, Hive + Wellness Australia and Greening Australia. Set to commence in late 2021-early 2022, the first three years will involve trials assessing productivity, seasonality issues and using farm machinery and technology for planting at scale. Prof. van Leeuwen said the research undertaken could also encourage non-Indigenous farmers to restore degraded land on their properties. “Farmers might even decide to turn half their cereal crop into native bush,” he said. The team is seeking $5 million from the Federal Government for its delivery, submitting a proposal to the Australian Research Council on Monday. The funding would bolster the $3.5 million university and industry funding already secured and help establish the proposed ARC Industrial Transformation and Training Centre. The ARC’s decision will be handed down in May.