PUBLISHED 7-31-2007

A key element of the farm bill   working its way through the House of Representatives must be an  increase in funding to attack a massive die-off of honey bees.

Left unchecked, Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder could devastate a huge portion of Kern County’s and California’s agricultural production.

Since the fall of 2006, colonies of honey bees required for the pollination of a variety of crops have been dying off nationally at rapidly increasing rates.

In Kern County, bees are especially critical to the $494 million almond crop.

 “We had enough bees this year to pollinate crops,” says Kern County Agriculture Commissioner David Moore. But U.S. Department of Agriculture officials share Moore’s concern about the adequacy of bee populations in the next few years. California uses a majority of the nation’s bees during the almond bloom period, and Kern County accounts for a huge portion of that use.

Moore also noted that prices for colony rental have been increasing for the past five years — raising costs for growers and consumers. It is a trend that will get worse if the  rate of die-off continues to rise.

This is happening at the same time almond demand is increasing. According to experts at the University of Florida, at the present rate of increase, “California almonds will need every honey bee colony in North America just to be pollinated adequately.”

That increasing demand for bees, combined with the worsening Colony Collapse Disorder, will threaten production of such crops in California and the nation as apples, peaches, citrus, soybeans, pears, pumpkins, cucumbers, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and strawberries.

One expert says the potential loss just in the U.S. could be $12 billion annually and could threaten food supplies.

 USDA’s budget for bee research is $7.4 million and department officials say they will add another $1 million to the budget. Rep. Alcee Hastings of Florida is proposing an additional $7.25 million annually and some industry groups are also pledging funds to study management practices, chemical and pesticide use, mites and pests, genetic changes and electromagnetic radiation as possible causes.

The nation must be prepared to spend even more than is being proposed. No one knows what factors, or combination of factors, is causing the problem.
Protecting the adequacy of the nation’s food supply must be a priority.