Bees pollinate over 75% of our most vital crops and favourite foods.
* The insect nerve-agents (i.e. neonicotinoids) are used as seed dressings - these end up in every part of the crop they protect, including pollen and nectar.
| Wild iris attracts a multitude of pollinators © Veronika Moore |
The Bee Cause
Friends of the Earth (FoE) is launching a new campaign to protect bees amid increasing reports that neonicotinoid pesticides* are damaging the health and life cycle of bees.
How valuable are bees? In the UK, it would cost £1.8 billion every year to hand-pollinate crops without bees - 20% more than previously thought - according to new research conducted by leading bee experts at the University of Reading on behalf of FoE.
In recent years Britain has lost over half the honey bees kept in managed hives and wild honey bees are nearly extinct. Solitary bees are declining in more than half the areas they've been studied and some species of bumblebee have been lost altogether.
Costly hand-pollination is already being used in parts of the world, notably pear trees in Hanyuan County, China, where native bee populations have been wiped out by a combination of loss of their natural habitat and intensive farming.
FoE is also creating a temporary 150 square metre wildflower meadow in the shadow of the National Theatre, London, to highlight the need for more bee-friendly habitats - with the flowers used to create the spectacle given away to passers-by to encourage gardening that will help bees to thrive.
National Bee Action Plan
The charity is urging David Cameron to save these important pollinators and save the nation billions by committing to a British bee action plan. The plan outlines action on the planning of our towns, the way we farm and use pesticides and funding for nature experts in the Government to ensure vital bee populations are restored.
Paul de Zylva, Nature Campaigner at Friends of the Earth said:
In recent years Britain has lost over half the honey bees kept in managed hives and wild honey bees are nearly extinct. Solitary bees are declining in more than half the areas they've been studied and some species of bumblebee have been lost altogether.
Costly hand-pollination is already being used in parts of the world, notably pear trees in Hanyuan County, China, where native bee populations have been wiped out by a combination of loss of their natural habitat and intensive farming.
FoE is also creating a temporary 150 square metre wildflower meadow in the shadow of the National Theatre, London, to highlight the need for more bee-friendly habitats - with the flowers used to create the spectacle given away to passers-by to encourage gardening that will help bees to thrive.
National Bee Action Plan
The charity is urging David Cameron to save these important pollinators and save the nation billions by committing to a British bee action plan. The plan outlines action on the planning of our towns, the way we farm and use pesticides and funding for nature experts in the Government to ensure vital bee populations are restored.
Paul de Zylva, Nature Campaigner at Friends of the Earth said:
'Unless we halt the decline in British bees our farmers will have to rely on hand-pollination, sending food prices rocketing. ...individuals can also play their part, by planting trees in the garden like ivy, holly, hazel and willow; which are around all year round. Herbs like marjoram, thyme and chives which can be grown in a window box are also good as they provide food for bees all year round, and flowers like crocuses, snowdrop, primrose and foxgloves.’
Rachel Carson published the bestselling Silent Spring 50 years ago, documenting the devastation wrought by pesticides in the US. It is now high time to 'give our bees a fighting chance'.
TAKE ACTION: Sign FoE 'Bee Cause' petition
| Beekeeping in Surrey, 2009 © Veronika Moore |
* The insect nerve-agents (i.e. neonicotinoids) are used as seed dressings - these end up in every part of the crop they protect, including pollen and nectar.
