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The Buzz on Honey and Pollination Services with Declining Pollinators

Four AAEA members present on Pollination Economics

According to a World Economic Forum article, over 75% of food crops depend on pollination by bees and butterflies. Pollination is an act that bees and butterflies take pollen from the male crop and cross it over to the female crop. Many agricultural producers are using neonicotinoid pesticides which can be deadly to bees. Researchers are concerned with increased pollinator losses worldwide due to habitat loss due to commercial agriculture, pesticide exposure, pests, and diseases. 

In an AAEA session taking place at the Allied Social Science Associations Annual Meeting entitled “Pollination Economics: The Supply of Honey and Pollination Services in the Face of Pollinator Decline,” four presentations will look into whether colony loss reduces honey production, the effect of colony loss on almond pollination, cost and supply functions for honey and pollination, and differences in the perceptions of pollinator losses between the general public and hobby beekeepers.

The organizer of the session, Brittney Goodrich from Auburn University says, “We hear more about honey bee colony losses because most are managed by humans, but it’s important for us to recognize and address the decreases in all pollinator populations, not just honey bees.”

Presentations:

  • Does Colony Loss Reduce Honey Yields?
    Peyton Ferrier, USDA Economic Research Service
  • The Great Bee Migration: Supply Analysis of Honey Bee Colony Shipments into California for Almond Pollination Services
    Brittney Goodrich, Auburn University, Jeffrey C. Williams, University of California, Davis and Rachael E. Goodhue, University of California, Davis
  • Beekeeper Costs and Supply Functions for U.S. Honey and Pollination Services
    Daniel Sumner, University of California, Davis, Antoine Champetier, Agricultural Issues Center, University of California, Davis
  • Support for Native Pollinators among the Public vs Hobby Beekeepers
    Jerrod Penn, Louisiana State University, Wuyang Hu, The Ohio State University, and Hannah Penn, Louisiana State University

This session will be taking place on Saturday, January 5, 2019 at 10:15 am – 12:15 pm at the Hilton Atlanta. To attend this session please contact Allison Scheetz in the AAEA Business Office for your complimentary Media Registration.

ABOUT AAEA: Established in 1910, the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) is the leading professional association for agricultural and applied economists, with 2,500 members in more than 60 countries. Members of the AAEA work in academic or government institutions as well as in industry and not-for-profit organizations, and engage in a variety of research, teaching, and outreach activities in the areas of agriculture, the environment, food, health, and international development. The AAEA publishes two journals, the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and Applied Economic Perspectives & Policy, as well as the online magazine Choices. To learn more, visit www.aaea.org.