Bee decline could affect what we eat
It’s estimated a third of the food we eat is pollinated by #bees – and we’re not just talking honey. Their role is so important in our food chain that their contribution is worth £650 million to our economy. But experts are warning we need to act now to ensure that continues.
As bees transport pollen from flower to colony they accidentally pollinate all sorts of fruit and vegetables, which end up on our plates. But despite having 200 species here in the UK – only a couple pollinate our #crops. Experts say we need to ensure other types are pollinating too, by making the right food and nesting resources available – whether on farmland, or in towns and cities. Ecologists at Reading University have compared it to a game of football.
The bees we rely on to pollinate crops for us now may not be around in the future because of changes in the climate, or a change in crops that grow on farmland. The University of Reading campus is a green space – full of flowers and plants. And that’s what scientists are encouraging – that our urban spots have plenty of parks and gardens, or even balconies, where the right flowers and plants will attract different types of bees.
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