In the latest sign that the little honey bee, responsible for $15 billion worth of agricultural products, is in trouble, the Agriculture Department reported this week that honey production was down in 2015 and that there are fewer hives making honey and in fields pollinating crops.
The annual report found that production for operations with five or more hives was down 12 percent and that the yield of honey per hive was off 10 percent in 2015.
According to the department:
“United States honey production in 2015 from producers with five or more colonies totaled 157 million pounds, down 12 percent from 2014. There were 2.66 million colonies from which honey was harvested in 2015, down 3 percent from 2014. Yield of honey harvested per colony averaged 58.9 pounds, down 10 percent from the 65.1 pounds in 2014.”
The honey bee has been squeezed in a fight between pesticide makers, farmers, and the Obama administration. It has also been plagued with many killers and the mysterious Colony Collapse Disorder.
However, in a separate report, USDA said that the No. 1 problem facing the bees is its old nemesis, the varroa mite.
A huge issue for the industry has been the high rate of hive deaths, put at over 42 percent in the last report issued by the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. That report, separate from the honey report, said, “beekeepers are not losing colonies only in the winter but also throughout the summer, sometimes at significant levels.”
Bee Culture magazine, the source for hobbyists and professionals, has other details on production and the bee.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
