Apples, avocados, cucumbers, onions, almonds, cranberries - what do they share in common? Besides the fact that they are examples of popular, everyday foods, they also share another theme: their production, as well as the production of several other foods, depends on pollination from bees. Logic says that without the presence of bees, agriculture would be intensely impacted. Yet, this very issue has begun to occur. In 2006, it was first reported that large numbers of seemingly healthy bees spontaneously disappeared and left behind vulnerable, weakened colonies (Foster, et al., 2007). This phenomenon was eventually titled “Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD).” In the United States alone, it was reported that one-third of the bee colonies had disappeared;
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Because they play such important roles in the life cycle of plants, the results of the Colony Collapse Disorder have proven to be disheartening, for it initiates the start of a chain-effect. Fewer bees mean fewer plants becoming pollinated. Fewer plants becoming pollinated result in fewer fruits being produced. In doing so, the issue of the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) opens up a whole new set of issues: economic issues. In fact, it has been estimated the United States farming industry has lost approximately $8 billion dollars indirectly because of the decrease of bees (Klet et al., …show more content…
The decline has been linked to the parasites, climate change and the industrial agriculture as well. The losses of the biodiversity from the usage of the harmful pesticides and monocultures have the most notable effects on the decline of bees worldwide. So what is it that must be done in order to relinquish the control of a healthy bee population thus sustaining effective pollination practices for the farming industry?
This country must speak for the bees, for without those tiny little black and yellow insects hovering and pollinating most of the world’s plants, most foods would not even be on the menu. The bees supply the world with a lot more than just the honey they make. A good percentage of the food we eat depends greatly on pollinating insects in the environment. They are the cornerstone to the building blocks of a healthy production of agricultural foods in the farm
Because they play such important roles in the life cycle of plants, the results of the Colony Collapse Disorder have proven to be disheartening, for it initiates the start of a chain-effect. Fewer bees mean fewer plants becoming pollinated. Fewer plants becoming pollinated result in fewer fruits being produced. In doing so, the issue of the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) opens up a whole new set of issues: economic issues. In fact, it has been estimated the United States farming industry has lost approximately $8 billion dollars indirectly because of the decrease of bees (Klet et al., …show more content…
The decline has been linked to the parasites, climate change and the industrial agriculture as well. The losses of the biodiversity from the usage of the harmful pesticides and monocultures have the most notable effects on the decline of bees worldwide. So what is it that must be done in order to relinquish the control of a healthy bee population thus sustaining effective pollination practices for the farming industry?
This country must speak for the bees, for without those tiny little black and yellow insects hovering and pollinating most of the world’s plants, most foods would not even be on the menu. The bees supply the world with a lot more than just the honey they make. A good percentage of the food we eat depends greatly on pollinating insects in the environment. They are the cornerstone to the building blocks of a healthy production of agricultural foods in the farm