Making Money With Honey

China is not only the country in the world producing the most honey, but it also leads in revenue per capita generated with one of nature's oldest and most widely used sweeteners. According to calculations based on our Statista Market Insights and World Bank population data, China's honey industry made $17 per inhabitant of the country in 2021. Two of the other spots in the top 8 are claimed by Asian countries as well.

As our chart shows, Indonesia and Vietnam come in sixth and seventh with a per-capita revenue of $6.5 and $6.0, respectively. This reflects the importance of Asian markets for global honey production. In 2021, almost half of the world's honey came out of countries from this geographic region. Other important honey markets include Canada, North Macedonia and Switzerland.

Honey from Asia, especially China, has been the subject of intense scrutiny by market watchdogs in recent years. India, a country traditionally opposed to many of China's endeavors in politics and business, is increasingly focused on uncovering the amount of honey exported from the People's Republic allegedly cut with cheaper and lower-quality syrup.

Looking at the total market value of sweeteners worldwide, honey had a share of 28 percent of the total global revenue of $145 billion. While artificial sweeteners like saccharin or stevia contributed $21.7 billion, sugar was responsible for $82.3 billion.