November 14, 2008
The Trumpet
Honeybees around the world are dying. In Britain, honey shortages have become so critical that the Honey Association predicts there will be no English honey by the end of the year.
Photo: The Earth’s food supply is threatened as honeybees around the world die. (Index Open)
The loss of bees will likely have a negative effect on England’s already-faltering economy. The Times reports, “Bees are worth an estimated £165 million to agriculture through pollinating the plants that provide a third of the food we eat, including such common crops as orchard fruits, carrots, broccoli and onions.”
The U.S. also has a bee shortage, suffering bee losses of 30 to 90 percent, according to some estimates.
Bees are more important to our food supply than many people realize. According to a Cornell University study quoted in the New York Times last year, it is estimated that honeybees “annually pollinate more than $14 billion worth of seeds and crops in the United States, mostly fruits, vegetables and nuts.” Beef and dairy industries are also affected since honeybees pollinate the crops used to feed cattle.
“Every third bite we consume in our diet is dependent on a honeybee to pollinate that food,” said the vice president of the American Beekeeping Federation.
The Trumpet reported on this trend last year as it became increasingly problematic, pointing out that the mass death of bees is just one more curse brought on by mankind not living in accordance with God’s laws.
http://www.thetrumpet.com/index.php?q=5668.4023.0.0