Watch: Emirati honey makes a buzz in space as UAE astronaut celebrates World Bee Day

The Sultan of Space has a sweet message to share on World Bee Day. Taking to Twitter on Saturday, UAE astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi posted a one-minute video calling bees the world’s unsung heroes.

The video was shot inside the orbiting International Space Station (ISS), where AlNeyadi is staying for six months doing scientific experiments. What makes the video special is that the honey featured in the clip came all the way from Al Khawaneej in Dubai, and was shipped to the space laboratory orbiting the Earth at an altitude of 400km.

In the video, AlNeyadi opens the bottle that carries the logo of the Mohammed bin Rashid Centre, and lets the honey slowly float freely in space. He captioned it: “Happy #WorldBeeDay! 🐝 Bees are unsung heroes, playing a vital role in our ecosystem and food production.”

“Even here in space, we're reminded of their impact on Earth. Their work makes life sweeter, especially when enjoying UAE’s locally sourced honey from Al Khawaneej,” AlNeyadi added.

Buzz about bees

Bees are pollinators. They support the growth of trees, flowers, and other plants, which serve as food and shelter for creatures large and small. Bees also provide high-quality food— honey, royal jelly and pollen — and other products such as beeswax, propolis and honey bee venom.

According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), bees contribute directly to the world food security, and a third of the world’s food production depends on bees.

FAO and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), however, “warn that bee populations have been declining globally over recent decades due to habitat loss, intensive farming practices, changes in weather patterns and the excessive use of agrochemicals such as pesticides. This in turn poses a threat to a variety of plants critical to human well-being and livelihoods.”

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