# How much of the world’s food production is dependent on pollinators?



## FriscoDad (Dec 7, 2020)

I just ran across this study on the "world of data" website when I was looking for some other data unrelated to beekeeping.


https://ourworldindata.org/pollinator-dependence



It seems to me that all the hype about "save the bees" or "save the pollinators" is mostly a first world problem. Most of the staple crops like rice, corn, wheat, and barley are entirely independent of pollinators. It is primarily the cash crops like Almonds, Avocados, Coffee, Chocolate, etc. are the issue. 

I'm a first year beekeeper, and I'm located in a suburban environment. I've heard of Colony Collapse and "save the bees" before I became a beekeeper, but that's not why I did it. I've always had fun observing and learning about insects. Ant farms, Praying Mantis eggs, Butterfly habitats, you name it, we always had some sort of insect habitat going on during the summer months while my kids were growing up. I've always thought of keeping bees, but the cost and complexity always kept me out of it until now.

Anyway, back to the data. I've been curious about friends and family that comment on my noble intentions of "saving the bees" when they find out about my new hobby. I have to tell them, "sure I might be noble, but that's not why I'm doing it. I just think it is a fun hobby."

Sorry for the wall of text. Any thoughts on the data or comments on the website? First world problem? 

Thanks, 
FriscoDad


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## johno (Dec 4, 2011)

You can shock your friends with my stock answer about saving the bees, not me I am going to enslave the bees as I am providing them with good accomodation I expect them to pay rent.


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## wildbranch2007 (Dec 3, 2008)

there are always alternative methods "
Why do people in China have to pollinate their crops by hand?


But in some parts of China, hand pollination can actually cost less than renting bees to pollinate crops. Farmers in Hanyuan began pollinating by hand *because human labor was cheap*, Frayer said. ... A Chinese farmer displays the pollen used to pollinate pear trees by hand.Apr 7, 2016 "


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## A Novice (Sep 15, 2019)

Honey bees have the best marketing of anything on the planet, and the odd thing is they never paid a dime for it.

If honey bees became extinct, the world wouldn't probably know, except that the price of almonds would go up substantially.

Honey bees are not needed to pollinate any of the crops native to North America, including peppers, tomatoes, squashes and pumpkins, as honey bees are not native to North America.

Honey bees are not needed to pollinate grasses, which includes all of the cereal grains, except buckwheat.

Pretty much everything honey bees pollinate can be and is pollinated by a vast number of other insects.

All that said, honey bees are quite valuable for pollinating large scale monoculture crops, as with everything blooming at exactly the same time, it is hard to get an adequate supply of pollinators to all arive at the right time and leave when they are done. Honey bees on flatbed trucks make it possible to have sunflower fields which stretch for miles in every direction.

SO DON'T TELL ANYBODY. Because we get a lot of goodwill from the communities we hive our bees in, even though most of the people who think honey bees fulfill a noble and essential purpose are terrified of getting stung.

And when they want to talk about how cool a flow hive is, just go along with them. It will pass.


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

FriscoDad said:


> I just ran across this study on the "world of data" website when I was looking for some other data unrelated to beekeeping.
> 
> 
> https://ourworldindata.org/pollinator-dependence
> ...


All the new world civilizations were built on crops that did not depend on honeybee pollination. Squash, beans and corn do just fine without honeybees or any other pollinator than wind. Potatoes, lamas and guinea pigs likewise. Multimillions lived in the rainforest before malaria and dengue fever and yellow fever etc lived quite well. There is a midden at the junction of the el ***** and amazon river that took 5 million people to supply the trash and broken pottery to build! No the end of man kind if we lost the honeybee is just not true.


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

Vance G said:


> All the new world civilizations were built on crops that did not depend on honeybee pollination. Squash, beans and corn do just fine without honeybees or any other pollinator than wind. Potatoes, lamas and guinea pigs likewise. Multimillions lived in the rainforest before malaria and dengue fever and yellow fever etc lived quite well. There is a midden at the junction of the el *** and amazon river that took 5 million people to supply the trash and broken pottery to build! No the end of man kind if we lost the honeybee is just not true.


So the spanish word for black is proscribed even though their is still a river of that name. What silly little twits we have become!


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## mgolden (Oct 26, 2011)

Squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, fruits and berries(raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, etc) need pollination. There is very little production with wind and rain pollination. Isn't the number about 0.3 of what we eat that needs pollination?

Mankind can survive without fruits but usually had access to some berries/rose hips but it would be a bland diet. Berries and rose hip need pollination.


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## GregB (Dec 26, 2017)

This honey bee pollination is over-rated.
But the real issue is that most all other pollinators have been wiped out in intensive ag areas.
And so now the honey bees are sold as-if the savior species (which is fine propaganda for the beekeeper community - so I will not argue. LOL)

But the great, untold secret is - my backyard produced tons of fruit and veg - all the while being ignored by my bees - so that shows how much my bees don't really matter.
They really don't matter because I live within a bug-sanctuary and the bugs handle everything.

One of the apple trees this summer half-broke as it was overloaded with fruit...
Honey bees have nothing to do with this apple crop (or plums, peaches, berries, cucurbitea veg, etc) in my backyard.
Lowly unseen bugs and few bumblebees have everything to do with this crop.

Meanwhile, here is a list of the said backyard's examples that even don't depend much on any pollination (except the seed production might in some cases)

potatoes
tomatoes
green beans
beets/turnips/carrots/other roots
greens (kale/spinach/turnips/chard)
green onions (annual and per-annual)
asparagus
peaches/plums are actually self-pollinators (the pollination is desired but not required)
Just my little example.


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## A Novice (Sep 15, 2019)

mgolden said:


> Squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, fruits and berries(raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, etc) need pollination. There is very little production with wind and rain pollination. Isn't the number about 0.3 of what we eat that needs pollination?
> 
> Mankind can survive without fruits but usually had access to some berries/rose hips but it would be a bland diet.


true enough those all need pollinators. But non e of them need honey bees. They are all native to the US, but honey bees are not. Honey bees are excellent pollinators. and are handy when you have huge areas of monoculture which need huge numbers of pollinators that show up at the right time and leave when no longer needed.


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## wildbranch2007 (Dec 3, 2008)

GregV said:


> But the great, untold secret is - my backyard produced tons of fruit and veg - all the while being ignored by my bees - so that shows how much my bees don't really matter.
> They really don't matter because I live within a bug-sanctuary and the bugs handle everything.
> Honey bees have nothing to do with this apple crop (or plums, peaches, berries, cucurbitea veg, etc) in my backyard.
> Lowly unseen bugs and few bumblebees have everything to do with this crop.
> Just my little example.


but would those bugs still pollinate your fruit and veg if the bees weren't there for competition with the stuff they really like?


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## Wilsted34 (11 mo ago)

This might be the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Bees are an extremely important part of so much for the world. If bees were fully wiped out the planet and people would surely know. They’re a huge part of the circle of life and have a huge purpose. Just because they only are good pollinators for only certain types of food for human use doesn’t mean they’re not extremely important for so many other things in nature. This is a pure example of human greed


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## Wilsted34 (11 mo ago)

mgolden said:


> Squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, fruits and berries(raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, etc) need pollination. There is very little production with wind and rain pollination. Isn't the number about 0.3 of what we eat that needs pollination?
> 
> Mankind can survive without fruits but usually had access to some berries/rose hips but it would be a bland diet. Berries and rose hip need pollination.


It’s not just about mankind survival. The bees are good for a lot of nature and to help it thrive which in turn helps humans thrives.


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## Eagle1 (Oct 9, 2021)

Question.......

I've a Warre Hive and will be receiving a package of bees in early April. In advance of this happening, I've been placing terra cota pots with a variety of "bee friendly" plants: sweet almond bushes (2), dwarf powder puff plants (2) and mystic spires (blue)(9) - with the thinking that the bees wont have to travel far in order to grab a bit to eat 

The question is prompted by the fact that these plants (primarily the mystic spires) are currently well visited by honey and bumble bees from the surrounding area. Once my hive gets started - will the presence of these other bees pose the hive any threat....such as increase robbing etc?


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## DavidBrown1212 (May 10, 2021)

A Novice said:


> Honey bees have the best marketing of anything on the planet, and the odd thing is they never paid a dime for it.



This is incredible, I can't believe it worked out this way. Sure does benefit the nuc producer.


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