Honeybees are perhaps one of the least recognized workers in the agricultural industry. They contribute $15 billion in annual agriculture revenue to the U.S. economy alone, as a full one-third of the U.S. food supply depends on them pollinating crops.
Apple orchards, for instance, require one colony of bees per acre in order to be adequately pollinated. So, unless the mysterious disappearance of bees is reversed, major food shortages could result.
This is not a brand new issue.
For several years now, scientists have been struggling to determine why bee colonies across the world are disappearing—a phenomenon dubbed colony collapse disorder (CCD). In a series of reports and videos, PBS talks about the bee colony devastation and its impact on the food supply and U.S. agriculture.
For a great review, please watch the PBS episode, Silence of the Bees.
What’s Causing Colony Collapse Disorder?
A few different theories are currently circulating that may explain the bee die-offs:
Pesticides and insecticides—such as Imidacloprid and Clothianidin, which kills insects by attacking their nervous systems. These are known to get into pollen and nectar, and can damage beneficial insects such as bees. According to the EPA’s fact sheet on clothianidin:
“Clothianidin has the potential for toxic chronic exposure to honey bees, as well as other nontarget pollinators, through the translocation of clothianidin residues in nectar and pollen … In honey bees, the effects of this toxic chronic exposure may include lethal and/or sub-lethal effects in the larvae and reproductive effects on the queen.”
Unfortunately, the EPA approved these pesticides, known as neonicotinoids, on the basis that the amounts found in pollen and nectar are not enough to kill bees. However, the marketing of these pesticides coincided with the occurrence of large-scale bee deaths in many European countries and the United States, resulting in lawsuits against Bayer.
Meanwhile, France banned Imidacloprid for use on corn and sunflowers after reporting large losses of bees after exposure to it. They also rejected Bayer´s application for Clothianidin, and other countries, such as Italy, have banned certain neonicotinoids as well. Another possibility is the inadvertent transfer of built-in pesticides found in genetically engineered crops, which has now been shown to create ‘pesticide factories’ in the human gut.
Unfortunately, here in the United States, where 'Factoy Farms' have basically replaced the 'Family Farm'. Under these circomstances, there is little to no hope of doing away with pesticides or any other chemical. Unless or until there is a return to 'Family Farming', with the variety of crops.
5 Ways To Save The Bees
Pollinators like bees are critical to our world’s food supply, and their numbers are dwindling. What can we do to help save the bees?
We rely on bees to pollinate over 30 percent of our food crops, but Colony Collapse Disorder threatens the world bee population and the future of our food supply. Plants like apples, avocados, squash, cucumbers, and many other food plants that we commonly eat need pollinators in order to grow.
Luckily, it’s not all gloom and doom! Here are some ways that you can take action right now to help the dwindling bee population.
1. Don’t spray pesticides. Pesticides are a major culprit in Colony Collapse Disorder, and the best way to help bees is to stop spraying the stuff!
2. Buy organic. Support organic farmers who use natural farming methods that are bee-friendly.
3. Don’t support industrial honey. Large-scale honey operations are more focused on output and profit than with the health of the bees. If you’re going to eat honey, make sure it comes from a small operation. You can often find small beekeepers at your local farmers market, and they’ll tell you all about their beekeeping adventures!
4. Plant a bee-friendly habitat. Pollinators need a place to pollinate, and by providing bee-friendly plants in your yard, porch, or window box, you give them a place to just be. Plants like fruit, herbs, melons, and even some trees can attract bees to your yard or garden.
5. Get heard! If we’re going to help save the bees on a large scale, we need to let decision-makers know how we feel. Check out this petition aimed at the EPA calling for a ban on pesticides that harm bee populations.
The above should be in quotes, but is not because of fear of technical difficulties. But either way, I have signed the petition and hope that other will do the same.
ReplyDeleteMore importantly, come this spring, I plan to start growing some 'bee-friendly plants'. In the past, I have avoided gardening with the excuse that I do not have a 'green thumb', but come this spring I will do my best to be a safe harbor for the bees.
p.s. By the way, another way, we can be part of the solutions is-->700 butterfly credits
ReplyDeletethis gift has been given 6,286 times
honey bees for women in Guatemala
about the need
Children living in indigenous communities in Guatemala have a 70% chance of suffering from malnutrition. The most readily accessible foods are extremely high in processed sugar. Therefore, many of these children are at high risk for diabetes and heart disease. HSP would like to give these marginalized indigenous communities better access to healthy, natural, local foods (such as honey) while at the same time, providing an indigenous woman with an employment opportunity.
about this gift
As an organization dedicated to empowerment, this gift of honey bees will give an indigenous woman an opportunity to be the owner honey bee farm, improving the economy of her family; at the same time, she will produce and sell honey to better the health of her community. Most food products in the local stores are high in processed sugar and are causing many health problems to the locals; however, this new product of natural honey will give them a healthy alternative.
about Highland Support Project
The Highland Support Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Richmond, Virginia. HSP serves the Mayan communities of Guatemala through transformational development projects and offers service-learning trips to North Americans in our ongoing mission to foster meaningful exchange and understanding across the Americas.
((( Credits that cost time not money in anyway, shape or form, regardless of what it is called)))