Pueblo a Pueblo: We celebrate with honey

Honey and Holy Week in Guatemala

In the year 2023 Holy Week is commemorated from April 2nd to the 8th. During this time various activities of different kinds are carried out. It is a week in which traditionally in Guatemala people consume a lot of honey such as bread with honey, chilacayote and chickpeas among others. 

The Pueblo a Pueblo association becomes part of this tradition with the beekeeping project. The beneficiaries of the project harvest honey mostly on dates close to the Holy Week. This honey is then sold to the villagers so that they can consume it as they like. 

The summer season is the honey harvesting season in Guatemala. Curiously, during Holy Week commemoration. which serves to promote honey the greatest amount of honey is consumed at this time. There is little habit of consuming it throughout the rest of the year. 

This year, the Santiago Atitlán group, made up of 5 women and 1 man, harvested 2 quintals of honey in their apiary located in a place known as Chuitinamit. According to history, this place was previously inhabited by Tzutuhil ancestors and was the center of the Tzutuhil kingdom. 

The group carries out various activities throughout the year in order to properly manage the bees, including cleaning, checking, feeding the bees and harvesting honey.

Concepción Pablo, 37 years old, is from the community of Chukmuk. As a beneficiary of the project, she began the process without knowing anything about bees. Now she has been learning about the work. It is the women who carry out the entire work process to maintain their apiary. 

In this way, our beneficiaries take advantage of Holy Week to sell and promote the produced honey and at the same time they are part of a tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation.