Northern Nevada Apiculture Society

WESTERN APICULTURE SOCIEY OF NORTH AMERICA Read the spring 2007 journal on line with many thanks to the WAS Journal.

BEEKEEPING'S BENEFIT TO AGRICULTURE

AGRICULTURE'S DEPENDENCE

Millions of acres of US. fruit, vegetable, oilseed and legume seed crops depend on insect pollination. An estimated 80 percent of crop insect pollination is accomplished by honey bees.

CROP DEPENDENCE

The almond crop is entirely dependent on honey bee pollination- without honey bees, there would be no almonds. California is responsible for more than half of the world's production of almonds.

Numerous other crops are 90 percent dependent on honey bee pollination. Some of those crops include apples, avocados, blueberries, cherries, cranberries and sunflowers. Other crops such as alfalfa, cucumbers, kiwi fruit, melons and vegetables are also pollinated by honey bees.

HOW MANY BEES DOES IT TAKE?

To pollinate California's approximately 420,000 bearing acres of almonds, it is estimated that it takes between 900,000 and 1,000,000 colonies of honey bees.

DOLLAR VALUE

A 1999 Cornell University study concluded that the direct value of honey bee pollination to US. agriculture is over $14 billion. This dollar amount is a 56.7% increase from the same study conducted in 1989.

FOOD SUPPLY

About one-third of the total human diet is derived directly or indirectly from insect�pollinated plants. The Cornell University study determined that honey bee pollination is a major benefit both to the price and supply of food for the United States.

LIVESTOCK FEED

The production of most beef and dairy products consumed in the United States is dependent on insect-pollinated legumes (alfalfa, clover, etc.). One half of all alfalfa seed produced comes from California. Approximately 220,000 colonies of honey bees are used to pollinate alfalfa fields for seed production.

PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

The first colony of bees ever rented for pollination purposes was in 1909 for
pollinating apples. The practice of renting bees to pollinate crops is expanding. Most pollination services available to growers in the United States are provided by commercial beekeepers. Approximately 2,500,000 colonies are rented for pollination each year and the average value of these crops is over $5.7 billion dollars.

LEADING PRODUCTION STATES

Honey is produced in every state. The following states are the top honey producing sta1 for 2002:

	Pounds	Dollar Value
State	Produced	of Production
North Dakota	24,000,000	$34,080,000
California	23,320,000	$30,083,000
Florida	20,460,000	$22,915,000
South Dakota	11,475,000	$16,065,000
Minnesota	8,541,000	$12,128,000
Montana	8,442,000	$11,397,000
Texas	7,638,000	$8,325,000
Wisconsin	6,650,000	$8,645,000
Michigan	5,544,000	$7,429,000
New York	5,880,000	$6,880,000

VARIABLES

Production varies yearly and regionally depending on rainfall, soil conditions, temperature, cropping patterns and management.

CONSUMPTION

�� The U.S. per capita consumption of honey is around 1.31 pounds per year.

ADDED VALUE

In addition to producing honey, honey bees produce beeswax and help pollinate agricultural crops, home gardens and wildlife habitat.

The USDA has estimated that 80 percent of insect crop pollination is accomplished by honey bees. Approximately one-third ofthe total human diet is derived directly or indirectly from insect-pollinated plants (fruits, legumes and vegetables).