The business of the honey-suckers in Bengaluru (India): the potentials and limitations of commercial faecal sludge recycling

Year of publication: 2012

Elisabeth Kvarnström, Joep Verhagen, Mats Nilsson, Vishwanath Srikantaiah, Shubha Ramachandran and Karan Singh

This paper explores some contributions being made by honey-sucker tanker operators -- that renders a small-scale sanitation service informally and within the private sector -- on waste (faecal) extraction and, in some cases, reuse. Operating outside the legal framework of waste management, this paper provides preliminary insight into the limitations and potentials of the 'honey-sucker business' as a sanitation service model, based on selected experiences in Bengaluru (India). Through semi-structured interviews and the application of Osterwalder and Pigneur's (2010) business model building blocks tool, this paper reveals that: 

i) a two-sided business model is being employed by the business (benefiting both septic tank/ pit owners and farmers); 

ii) positive outcomes of sludge reuse in farms seem to outweigh negative outcomes; and

iii) the honey-sucker business seems to be a financially viable sanitation service model (especially amongst middle-class households with no piped connections). 

As an exploratory study, the authors of the paper encourage further research into aspects that interlink with the honey-sucker business to achieve greater clarity on its positive contributions to society, and its prospects of scaling up and replication across different contexts.

Suggested citation: 

Kvarnström, E. et. al., 2012. The business of the honey-suckers in Bengaluru (India): the potentials and limitations of commercial faecal sludge recycling – an explorative study. (Occasional Paper 48) [online] The Hague: IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre. Available at: <http://www.irc.nl/op48>

Related materials

A feature story entitled "Productive sanitation - the honey suckers of Bengaluru", based on the case study, was published in the July 2012 issue of New Agriculturist at: <http://www.new-ag.info/en/focus/focusItem.php?a=2728>.

A presentation on the honey-suckers by Vishwanath Srikantaiah is available on Slideshare. 

IRC's Joep Verhagen presented the honey-sucker case study during an IRC webinar organised on 2 May 2012. His original presentation is also available on Slideshare.

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