JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia last week decided to implement a ban on the import of foreign bees in the next three years.
Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Abdul Rahman Al-Fadli acted against threats that imported bees pose to the local strain.
Beekeepers are threatened by many problems that imported bees bring with them. One of the biggest risks is cross-breeding. If the imported bees are bred with local bees, they will stain the purity.
The beekeepers are afraid that if the cross-breeding continues, the original breed might become extinct.
The Saudi Apis mellifera jemenitica is a breed that can survive in the extreme climatic conditions of Saudi Arabia, which many bees aren’t able to, and produce high-quality honey. They are smaller, slender and yellow in color.
It isn’t just the genetic manipulation; the imported bees attack local bees.
They are also the carriers of diseases that contaminate local bees and cause great loss; beekeepers do not just find a few dead bees when disease spreads — they find hive upon hive empty.
Beekeepers took these problems to the minister of environment and agriculture. The minister held a meeting with the president of Nahali Makkah Society and came up with the solution of entirely banning the import to preserve the bees and prevent extinction.
Consequently, fewer bees will produce less honey, so less honey will be available for selling locally or internationally, which might cause a disruption in the market.
The local honey market in Jeddah, located in Bab Makkah, is one of the largest in the Middle East.
Ten to 15 percent of the honey sold in this market is local; because of its scarce amount, this honey is purer and more expensive than the others.
When we talked to Abu Waheed, a local shop owner, about the effects of the ban on the market, he said: “Honey will become rare; therefore, the price will become much more than it already is. Local honey is 10 percent of my shop and it is three times more expensive than Pakistani, Yemeni or Russian honey.”
He added: “If there are fewer bees producing it, the price will rocket through the sky.”
Saudi Arabia to ban import of foreign bees by 2020
Saudi Arabia to ban import of foreign bees by 2020
Saudi reserve records critically endangered Ruppel’s vulture
RIYADH: King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve Development Authority has announced the sighting and documentation of a Ruppel’s vulture (Gyps rueppellii) within the boundaries of the reserve — a landmark environmental and historical event.
This is the third officially documented record of the species at national level and the first of its kind in the central and eastern regions of the Kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The sighting carries global significance given the conservation status of the vulture, which is classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, following the loss of more than 90 percent of its population throughout its original range in Africa over the past three decades.
The appearance of this rare bird in King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve adds a new entry to the limited record of its sightings in the Kingdom, which began in Aseer region in 1985, followed by a sighting in 2018, and another in AlUla in September 2025.
Its latest recording in central and eastern Saudi Arabia is considered an important environmental indicator of the quality of natural habitats provided by the reserve.
Globally, Ruppel’s vulture faces major threats, including poisoning from pesticides, electrocution, collisions with power lines, and the loss of nesting sites as a result of urban expansion and land-use change.
Additional challenges include the decline of carrion resulting from changes in livestock-rearing practices, illegal hunting for use in traditional beliefs, and the adverse effects of climate change on its breeding areas and migratory routes.
The vulture is primarily found in the African Sahel and is considered extremely rare in the Arabian Peninsula. Its sighting in King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve underscores the Kingdom’s leading role in conserving biodiversity and supporting the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 for protecting ecosystems.
It also reflects the success of the authority’s efforts to protect wildlife and restore ecosystems, positioning the reserve as a safe and attractive habitat for rare and native species.
