The effects of Colony Collapse Disorder are still reverberating in hives throughout the U.S., but the business of bees is actually booming.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that commercial beekeeping adds more than $15 billion in economic value to agriculture each year, with no sign of a recession in sight.
“So our rule out here is if a bee lands on you, you’re not allowed to swat it off because it’s an expensive bee and we expect work out of them,” says Blake Davis, an orchard manager for pollen in Arbuckle, Calif. “Without them, there would be really no point to farm almonds out here.”
About 80 percent of the world’s almonds are grown in California, and almost every one of those almonds wouldn’t be possible without a bee moving pollen among blossoms. Lots of other crops depend on the work of bees, too, including plums, cherries, and apples.
