Managed bee pollination
Managing honeybees can increase food production, biodiversity and provide income where local pollinators have declined
Summarised
- Honeybees are highly important for global food production.
- Loss of habitat and pollution are causing insect populations to drastically decline.
- Managed honeybees can increase crop yields and biodiversity, as well as creating new income sources for rural farmers through honey, beeswax, and pollination services.
- Introducing honeybees to a new area must be done with care to avoid negative effects
What is the issue?
Bees and other animal pollinators are essential for three quarters of the world’s crops. The decline in pollinators threatens sustainable food production and are especially affecting indigenous communities and local subsistence farmers.
How can we solve it?
People living in the Hindu Kush Himalaya have a long tradition of managing honeybees and growing crops that need pollination. Successful solutions build on local knowledge, engage both communities and politicians and have multiple benefits directly impacting peoples´ life, but also contributing to resolve global challenges.
How can we make sure the solution is a success?
Knowledge is needed to manage honeybees correctly and efficiently. This includes the type of bee species to use, how many beehives are needed and where to place them. Knowledge is also needed on how to avoid pesticide poisoning and attacks by predators, in addition to preventing managed honeybees from outcompeting local pollinating insects and spreading diseases
The quality and quantity of my apples both increased and I am getting better production from those apple trees
Abid Alid, apple farmer from Chitral, Pakistan. Photo by Sajjad Hussain/AKDNAbid Ali lives in Chitral in northern Pakistan where he grows apples. He also has his own beehives that he has placed in his apple orchards for the last 22 years.
