If the bee disappeared off the face of the earth, man would only have four years left to live. ― Maurice Maeterlinck,The Life of the Bee
1) Food Security:
With a growing world population of more than 7.8 billion people, being able to ensure food security is a priority. But not only. Food diversity, balance and quality are also important goals for the well-being of mankind. What you may not know, is that bees and other pollinators enable the pollination of more or less three quarters of the plants that produce 90% of the world's food. Simplified... nearly a third of the world's food production depends on bees. So what happens if bees disappear?
2) Sustainable Farming:
Did you know that over the past 50 years crops depending on pollinators have tripled? This is not for nothing that bees are a farmer's best friend! Due to effective pollination, the quantity of produce a plant can generate, its quality and even the resistance to pests of the plant itself are enhanced. According to the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, the global production of food that depends every year directly on pollination is worth between 235 and 577 billion dollars.
3) Biodiversity and Environmental Protection:
Bees are a sign of well-functioning ecosystems. They play a crucial role in preserving the ecological balance and biodiversity in nature. Without they contribution, food production is not possible, thus hindering biotic and genetic diversity. Furthermore, the existence or absence in certain environments is an indicator of the health of the latter.
- The bees of our veggie garden in the mountains of Volcano Barva, Costa Rica -